


Young Justice Dark

by iamgoku



Category: Constantine (Comic), Constantine (TV), DCU (Comics), Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Action & Romance, Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Fusion, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, British Character, Chainsmoking, Cigars, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Romance, Eventual Sex, F/F, F/M, Fanart, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Illustrated, Illustrations, Magic, Magic-Users, Minor Original Character(s), Original Character(s), Pre-Series, Smut, Sorceresses, Supermartian, Teenagers, Telepathic Sex
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-13
Updated: 2018-02-11
Packaged: 2018-12-14 22:39:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 24,534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11792961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iamgoku/pseuds/iamgoku
Summary: Following the events at Project Cadmus and the establishment of the team, Batman and the League also decide to recruit another team of young individuals aimed at combating the supernatural and magical mystical issues that may arise, as well as to assist the regular team, thus forming the Young Justice Dark, led by Abigail Constantine, the daughter of John Constantine.AU starting at season 1





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Crossposted from Fanfiction.net
> 
> This story will focus on the main team, as well as the other faction, relating to more magical and supernatural issues, both factions make up the overall team.
> 
> Chapters will follow episodes of the show, as well as original missions and cases I come up with, and scenes/filler inbetween. 
> 
> My original character, Abigail is one of the two team leaders, and eldest of the group. 
> 
> There will be original characters joining the canon ones. 
> 
> I am basing John Constantine off of his comic book versions, as well as Matt Ryan's portrayal.

**London, England**

The cold London street was mostly bare of people at this time of night.

The drunken stumbling of a teenage girl could be seen as she slumped against a streetlight, slurring her words as she pushed herself off of it and went on her way. She had long blond hair tied in a ponytail, with two bangs framing her face, a school uniform present as well as a backpack slung over one shoulder haphazardly as she continued on, turning slowly into a lone alleyway.

As soon as she disappeared around the corner into the alley, a lone figure seemingly appeared out of the darkness, walking to the entrance of the alley and taking interest in the girl who was walking along, unaware of the other presence that was following her.

The alleyway was a dead end, blocked off by a brick wall covered in graffiti, the girl walked into it, exclaiming in shock as she stumbled back clutching her forehead.

The figure let out a low chuckle, which caused the girl to stagger around and look back at it, her blue eyes widening in shock as the figure came into view, a unkempt man who looked to be in his mid twenties, dressed in a grey hoodie and dark jeans with a pair of boots.

His gaze was fixated on the girl, who backed up, a look of fear crossing her face as she backed into the wall behind her.

"Looks like you lost your way little girl" he said with a smirk, eyeing her with a predatory look of hunger in his eyes.

The girl let out a whimper as she saw him lick his lips as he continued walking towards her.

"P-Please no...L-Leave me alone!" she stuttered out, the chilling fear seemingly sobering her up as the man only chuckled out again, his tone deepening as he spoke.

"Oh don't worry baby, this'll be over quick" he said as his eyes suddenly darkened to a deep red and his fingertips morphed into claws, his teeth taking on a sharp jagged appearance.

The girl let out a terrified scream before the man suddenly leapt forward towards her, only to be suddenly stopped mid air, as if coming into contact with an invisible wall, he fell down to the ground and let out a growl as he landed on his knees.

Looking up he saw the air suddenly ripple before a yellowish almost transparent wall appeared before shimmering out of existence, he also saw a glowing yellow coloured circle surrounding him with several lines pointing towards him around the circle, looking around in confusion before his eyes met the girls.

The former look of terror was completely gone, and she now bore a small smirk.

"Wasn't expecting that, now were you?" she said as she walked closer, her voice also holding no trace of drunkenness, nor did her movement, the man tried to lunge forward again only to find himself unable to move.

"It didn't take me long to catch onto your little game, I mean you killed eight girls over the past month, all blond's and quite young, not one of 'em older than twenty three. All of them found dead and withered into nothing but a sunken husk of their former selves, there bodies having been drained of their life force. Though it looks like tonight you bit of more than you could chew" she said as she leaned down on her knees in front of him, watching with slight amusement as he tried to struggle.

"You're not the first Incubus I've encountered, though most of the others try seducing their prey, not flat out raping them like you, hell some of them don't even kill their sexual partners, unlike you however" she said as her tone hardening as she narrowed her eyes before placing her hand on his head as he snarled and screamed.

"You won't be causing any trouble round here any more" she said as the circle surrounding the incubus began to glow brighter as she chanted an incantation, followed by the incubus letting out a scream that filled the alleyway.

**(Five Minutes Later)**

The girl was now walking down another street, having changed her outfit from the schoolgirl uniform, she was now dressed in a long sleeved white shirt, a pair of dark black jeans, red converse sneakers adorning her feet.

She also wore a double breasted maroon trench coat on top of her clothes.

As she continued on, she entered a more populated area of the city, despite the late hour, the night owls and all nighters were still around in this area, mostly in pubs and clubs scattered around the place.

She was tempted to go inside of one such pub as she walked past, but continued on, her need for sleep beating her need for a drink.

Reaching into one of her coat pockets, she pulled out a round tube, taking the cap off before sliding a thick cigar out into her free hand, placing the tube back in her pocket she proceeded to bite the end off the cigar, spitting the excess onto the ground and placing it between her lips.

Bringing her hand back out of her pocket she flipped open a lighter and lit up her cigar, inhaling several times as the end became a nice burnt orange colour before pocketing the lighter once more.

Taking a deep puff, she savoured the smoke travelling into her mouth and throat, not allowing the smoke to travel further and into her lungs, it wasn't a cigarette, and wasn't meant to be smoked like one.

After several seconds she exhaled, watching as the thick smoke travelled up into the night air before continuing on her way back to her flat.

.

.

.

.

.

This was Abigail Constantine, the daughter of John Constantine, and her life was about to get a lot more interesting.

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a short follow up of chapter 1

Abigail finally reached her flat, having decided on walking the whole way back. She stepped through the front door and flicked on the light switch before closing the door behind her, she reached down and unlaced her shoes, placing them by the door where several other shoes were kept rather untidily.

Looking around the entry way to her flat, she saw the kitchen area was somewhat messy, but nothing she couldn't take care of in the morning. Turning, she took off her maroon trench coat and walked further into the flat, tossing the coat over the couch that was situated in the lounge room area.

The flat was quite big, and had a variety of rooms, some she had converted and done some remodelling to suit her needs.

She placed the now exhausted butt of her cigar down into a nearby ashtray on the coffee table, the ashtray itself containing several identical butts from previous cigars.

Walking along she left the lounge room and walked down a hallway, passing a few doors before arriving at the bathroom. After entering she began undressing even more, taking off her shirt before putting it in a tall laundry hamper, she then took off her pants and socks, leaving her in nothing but her bra and panties, which soon joined the other clothes in the hamper.

The bathroom was a good size, it had a bath and shower, both separate from one another, a sink with a wide mirror, and drawers which sat beside a small cabinet under the sink.

As she moved towards the shower she grabbed her tooth brush and a tube of tooth paste before entering, closing the glass sliding door and turning the knobs several times. After a few seconds the water began pouring down onto her, after she adjusted the temperature, steam began to fill the shower as the hot water cascaded down her body. Abigail merely stood there, leaning against the side for about a minute before she proceeded to reach down, placing her toothbrush and toothpaste on the raised section of the shower floor, where several other bottles and various shower items were placed.

After squirting several pumps of shower gel onto her hands, she began to rub it onto various parts of her body, letting the soapy liquid lather up before rinsing herself, the scent of the soap filling her senses as she allowed herself to relax.

She then slowly sat down on the shower floor, moving her hair back out of her face as she picked up her toothbrush and squeezed out a small amount of toothpaste before bringing it to her mouth.

She proceeded to brush her teeth thoroughly, tilting her head back and filling her mouth with water before spitting out the remaining toothpaste down the drain.

Next she moved onto her hair, grabbing a bottle of almost empty shampoo she poured a generous amount into her hands before rubbing it into her soaked blond hair, letting it penetrate down to her scalp, made sure not to get it into her eyes before once again tilting her head back, allowing the water to cascade down her hair to her back, and wash out all of the soapy suds.

Abigail remained in the shower for another five minutes, simply sitting there and letting the water's warmth wash over her and relax her, briefly grabbing a wash cloth and washing her face before standing once again, ringing out the wash cloth before turning off the shower.

Stepping out onto the one of the bathroom floor mats, she reached for her towel, a fluffy green one which hung beside a similar purple towel.

It took her several minutes to fully dry herself off, as well as her hair. Part of her considered just cutting her hair short to avoid having to dry it so much.

Wrapping the towel around her dried form, she exited the bathroom and proceeded down the hall once more, pausing briefly at one of the door's and opening it and peering in, she saw a figure lying on the bed, the room was mostly full of darkness, save for a bedside lamp which had shapes cut out in the shade, allowing the light to project the images out into the room.

Looking at the lone figure on the bed for a few more moments, before she softly closed the door, and made her way to her own room.

As soon as she entered, she threw her towel over to a nearby chair and walked over to her closet, opening it to reveal a walk in closet. Entering she stopped at a chest of drawers and opened them, pulling out a pair of panties and a bra before putting them on.

She then grabbed a pair of red pyjama pants, and a grey long sleeved shirt and put them on over her underwear before exiting her wardrobe, closing the doors on her way out.

Her room was also in a semi-messy state, but she didn't care, she just wanted to hop into her bed and get a few hours sleep before she would have to get up all over again.

As she walked over to her bed, she was about to turn off the light, when a soft knocking at the door made her pause.

The knocking was soft, and almost reluctant, before the door then opened to reveal the one who knocked.

She was a young girl, who looked several years younger than Abigail, around eleven years old.

She had a thin and skinny frame, brown eyes, and freckles on her cheeks. Her hair was a dark blue colour, and went down past her chin in length, but wasn't long enough to reach her shoulders.

The girl was wearing am orange button up pyjama shirt and matching long pants, with yellow socks.

She stood at the door for a few seconds, her eyes glancing at Abigail with somewhat embarrassed look, though also pleading as she rubbed her right arm.

"You were still awake when I looked into your room, huh?" Abigail said simply as the girl nodded slowly.

It wasn't a secret to Abigail that she'd had trouble sleeping, it wasn't a rare thing.

"Another nightmare..." the girl said quietly as her lip quivered slightly.

Abigail leaned down and folded the top of the blankets on her bed down and walked over to the girl, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder, the girl instantly leaned into her embrace.

"Come on, it's ok, you know I don't mind letting you share my bed when you have trouble sleeping." Abigail said softly as the reached the bed, the girl hopping in first and moving over to the right side, letting Abigail slide in next to her before bringing the blankets up over them.

Abigail reached to turn off the bedside lamp before rolling over to her side, the young girl moved closer and Abigail put her arm around her, letting her once again relax in her embrace, their shared warmth quickly spreading.

"Good night Abby" the young girl said closing her eyes and allowing her body to be drawn into a relaxed sleep, comforted in the older girls embrace.

"Good night, Coraline" Abigail said softly as she waited a few more seconds before closing her eyes, the fatigue of the days events taking it's toll on her as she quickly fell asleep as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, so just to make something clear.
> 
> For the sake of this story, and it's plot, the events of 'Coraline' the book/film took place IN the Young Justice/DC world, ok. so they exist, in this story, in the same continuity.
> 
> so basically in this story, she wasn't brought here by magic, or by some freak accident, Coraline was BORN in the DC/Young Justice world.
> 
> There will be flashbacks/backstory showing how she ended up with Abigail, don't worry


	3. The Day After

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A longer third chapter :)

The sound of the alarm clock filled the room for several seconds before it was accompanied by a groan.

Abigail's hand reached over and fumbled momentarily before taking hold of the clock, throwing off the blanket with her free hand she then turned and switched off the alarm. For several seconds she merely sat there before stretching her arms out and setting her legs beside her bed.

The sound of the shower could be heard from down the hall, signalling that Coraline had already awoken before she did. Finally with a small groan, she stood up and turned, moving the blankets back before she made her way out of her room.

Entering the kitchen, her eyes looked across the area, it was still in it's somewhat messy state, there was a few dishes and bowls littered around the double sink, and crumbs spread over a chopping board sitting on the counter top. The oven, which sat on top of a grill, had an empty baking tray inside, with the remnants of biscuits that she and Coraline had baked the other night, then eaten them all while watching a movie marathon, Abigail had simply placed the tray back in the oven till she was going to do the washing up.

A lone pan also sat atop the stove, it wasn't too dirty, but had some oil and grease solidified at the bottom.

She was cut off from her thoughts at the sound of the shower stopping, and proceeded to step over to the sink, turning the swivelled tap head and turning the knob for hot water, she allowed it to heat up, before placing a plug into the right sink and filling it with water, squirting in some dish soap from underneath the sink, and allowing it to fill mostly to the top before doing the same thing with the left sink.

After that she put the various plates, bowls, cutlery and pans into sinks and let them soak for a few minutes before she began to wash them, cleaning them with a soapy sponge.

A few more minutes passed, before she was joined by Coraline, now looking clean and woken up fully, she was wearing a pair of casual blue pants and socks, and a dark red long sleeved shirt.

She instantly made her way to the side of Abigail, the sink having a metal flat spot beside it where a drying rack sat, allowing the placed cleaned items to drain off any water into the left sink.

Picking up a tea towel and began drying the cleaned kitchenware, putting them away in their proper place as Abigail kept washing up.

"So, breakfast?" Coraline asked as she placed a few spoons into a top drawer under the left of the counter top, the side facing the kitchen.

"Eh, I don't really feel like making anything this morning, how about we go out to eat?" Abigail suggested as she placed the now clean pan into the drying rack.

Coraline nodded as a smile came to her face. "Can we go to that diner, you know the one with the great pancakes"

"Sure thing, we can go to that cafe" Abigail replied with a smirk, putting more emphasis on the word as Coraline rolled her eyes lightly.

"Same thing"

"Actually there is a distinction" Abigail said as she continued washing up.

After she finished and placed the last item in the drying rack for Coraline to wipe down, she wiped her hands on a nearby cloth before speaking.

"I'm gonna go and have a quick shower, I had one last night so I'm only jumping into freshen up. Then we can go and get something to eat" she said before exiting the kitchen area.

Coraline continued drying the kitchenware as she heard the shower turn on, Abigail wasn't in there long, only about five minutes before the shower stopped. By the time Coraline was finished drying the last item, Abigail stepped into the lounge area, having changed out of her pyjamas and into a pair of long black jeans, and a long sleeved grey button up shirt, leaving the collar undone as she sat down went and grabbed her shoes by the door, putting them on as Coraline put the last item away under the stove.

"It's going to be cold out this morning, go and grab your coat and then we can get going" Abigail said as Coraline nodded, walking across the lounge area and up the hall to her room.

As she entered she noted her bed was still slightly dishevelled from last night, not having taken the time to fix up her blankets before she went to sleep in Abigail's room, quickly tossing the blankets into a semi-normal state, before she opened her closet and shifted through a row of clothes, before grabbing a long yellow coat that went down past her waist and stopped above her knees

Abigail had gotten her the coat, after Coraline had commented on the older girls maroon trench coat, liking the look of it. Abigail had gotten her a coat similar to it, this one having a hood, as well as it being close to the appearance of Coraline's favourite yellow raincoat, which added to the appeal to the younger girl.

Throwing on the coat, she threw the hood back over onto her shoulders before buttoning it up and rushing back out of the room, coming back to the flat's entrance to see Abigail with her shoes on, and also wearing her signature trench coat.

Coraline quickly pulled on a pair of boots, before the two exited the flat.

(Line Break)

Stepping inside the cafe, Abigail was immediately met with the smell of coffee beans and food in the process of being cooked.

Savouring this as she walked over to a table near the window overlooking the street, she sat down, Coraline sitting opposite her as the two picked up the laminated menus that were provided.

It wasn't long before a brown haired waitress who looked a few years older than Abigail came over to their table.

"Good morning, are you two ready to order?" she asked as Coraline nodded before answering.

"Can I get the bacon and eggs,and pancakes, please" Coraline said as the waitress nodded, writing it down on the small pad she had in her hand.

"How would you like your eggs?"

"I'll have fried" Coraline replied as the waitress nodded before turning to Abigail.

"And I'll have a full English breakfast with extra mushrooms, but you can skip the baked beans" Abigail said to the waitress who wrote down the order.

"Not really a full English breakfast without baked beans, is it" the waitress said raising a brow teasingly.

"I came here for food, not lip" Abigail shot back lightly, as the waitress chuckled before replying.

"Do you want beef or pork sausages with that?"

"Pork sausages" Abigail said as the waitress noted it down before speaking up once again.

"Any drinks?" the waitress asked looking back at them.

"I'll have orange juice" Coraline said, before Abigail spoke up.

"I'll just have some coffee, with milk" Abigail said as the waitress nodded, writing down the last of their order before excusing herself as she went back to the kitchen.

Abigail and Coraline didn't have to wait too long, their food coming out together as the waitress placed the plates down, going back and bringing out the rest, as well as their drinks before going to check on another customer.

Coraline immediately dug into her food, choosing to eat the pancakes first, dousing them in syrup.

Abigail spooned in three spoonfuls of sugar into her coffee, before pouring in some milk from the small jug provided, and stirred for a few seconds before taking a sip, letting the caffeine enter her system.

She then started eating her meal too, taking enjoyment as she filled her stomach, Abigail hadn't eaten since lunchtime yesterday, and she was determined to make up for that.

After finishing their breakfast, Abigail had paid the bill and left, they didn't return to the flat immediately, passing the time until they needed to return.

As soon as they did return, Coraline went back to her room as Abigail began putting together a lunch box, by the time she was finished Coraline has come back out, having taken off her coat and changed into a lighter outfit, also having a backpack strung over her shoulders.

"Ready to go?" Abigail asked, to which Coraline nodded as she was handed the lunch box, taking off her backpack she quickly deposited it inside before putting it on again.

The two then made their way out of the lounge room area, not going down the hall that lead to their rooms, but one on the opposite side of the flat, this hall had doors that lead to the laundry and other rooms. Abigail stopped at a seemingly normal door, with a brass doorknob, opening it and moving aside, allowing Coraline to step in front of her before they walked through.

A flash of golden light filled the hall before the door closed once more.

(Line Break)

America: Los Angeles

Abigail and Coraline stepped out into another hallway, the door matching the one they had entered.

Walking out, Abigail closed the door behind them as they walked along the hall and out into a main room. The apartment had a different layout then the flat, but was still very spacious and renovated to suit Abigail's needs.

Coraline stopped in the kitchen, opening the fridge and retrieving a bottle of water which she placed in her bag, before they continued on their way. Stepping out into a wide hall which led to the front door, the wide hall had windows all along the left side facing out onto the street, a collection of large plastic water dispenser jugs were lined up along the wall, the window shutters were open and letting the sunlight filter through as the two walked along towards the front door.

A few minutes later, they were out in front of the apartment building and waiting on the curb until the sight of a school bus in the distance caught their attention.

The time difference between London and Los Angeles, had London eight hours ahead. This meant that most days, they would wake up and have several hours to spare before needing to leave for LA for Coraline to be on time for school.

This usually lead to them sleeping in, at least by the London time frame.

As the bus finally stopped beside them on the curb, Abigail placed her arm around Coraline's side and gave her a one armed hug, which Coraline reciprocated by quickly wrapping both arms around Abigail's waist before breaking apart as the doors opened.

"Have fun at school" Abigail said with a small wave as Coraline glanced back at her.

"I will!" she said smiling back before the doors closed once more, the bus moving out from the curb and continuing on its way. Abigail's eyes didn't leave the bus until it turned down the street, disappearing from her view.

"Be safe..." Abigail whispered as her eyes remained on the spot for a few moments, reaching into one of her coat's pockets, she pulled out a tube and removed the cap, taking out a cigar which she quickly bit the end off and placed it in her mouth. Taking out her lighter she flipped it open and sparked it up, a few puffs later the cigar was fully lit as she flipped the lighter closed and placed it back in her pocket before walking back towards the apartment.

(Line Break)

England: London

After having gone back through the apartment and into her England flat, Abigail had immediately ventured out.

Walking further into the city for some time, until she came to a small bookshop. The green paint that marked it's sign and outer extremities peeling slightly, and the front window was darkened, preventing anyone from looking in.

Stepping inside, Abigail was met with a moderately sized store, bookshelves and tables filled it with books of all shapes and sizes, the back of the store had a another room which connected to an upstairs flat, as well as being a kitchen.

A man who looked to be in his mid-thirties sat behind a desk, he had pale skin and dark black coloured hair, and was wearing a pair of sunglasses despite being inside, he was holding a small book which he was focusing on.

"Good to see you again, Abigail." he said casually, not even looking up from the book as she walked further in.

"Same" she said giving him a nod as she approached the desk, stepping beside it and continuing on.

"Marcus is down there blowing up all kinds of shit" he said he in the same casual tone as he turned a page and continued reading.

Abigail merely continued on, walking into the kitchen in the back room of the store and approached the fridge, opening the freezer compartment she reached in and gripped the temperature dial, turning it several times in both directions like one would a combination lock, she did so for several moments before the fridge suddenly rumbled slightly, before sliding to the right, revealing a hidden doorway behind it.

Closing the freezer door, she walked past the fridge and into the doorway which led to a flight of stairs, as she walked down, the fridge slid back into place, covering the hidden passage once more, a few seconds passed before a loud bang was heard from down below.

Abigail rolled her eyes slightly before continuing on her way.

The stairs were well lit and continued down until she reached even ground once more, walking into a large underground room, far bigger than the bookshop she had entered from.

The walls were solid stone and no outside light was seen, the area was lit by electric lighting which showed several passages leading off into other areas. The main room had tables and desks strewn about with a variety of items and tools.

Several high bookshelves also were present, all filled to the brim with different coloured books of varying thickness.

Her eyes came to rest on a man standing beside a table, he was currently waving his hands about trying to clear the smoke billowing from a bubbling beaker that was set up in an intricate chemistry set.

The man looked to be in his late twenties, with a tall lean frame, brown hair that was currently dishevelled, and bright green eyes.

He seemed to notice Abigail's presence as he immediately shot up to greet her.

"Oh, Abigail! I wasn't expecting you till later this afternoon?" the man said as he made his way over to her.

Abigail suppressed the urge to roll her eyes as she replied. "It is the afternoon..." she said as the man paused and looked down at the watch on his left hand, before chuckling.

"Hehehe, so it is...I must have lost track of time"

"Wouldn't be the first time you've done that Marcus" she said giving him a pat on the back before walking over to one of the workbenches.

"Have you managed to fix up the crossbow I brought last time?" she asked as the looked at the object in question, a crossbow with a dark black motif sat upon the table, it had a rotating stock that seemed to fit small arrows into it.

"Ah yes! I finished working on that the other day. It was in very good shape given it's age, plus I was able to modify it without having to change too much of it's original design." Marcus said walking over and lifting the crossbow up, offering it to her.

Abigail placed her cigar back in her mouth before she took the crossbow in her hands and tested the weight, before Marcus began going over it.

"I managed to modify the stock so you have increased ammunition, as well as increase the propulsion range, the rapid fire capabilities are unhindered still." he said before pointing to the front end of the crossbow.

"I also hooked up an attachment for holy water vials, so the arrows can be soaked in it before firing. As well as adding a new more high tech scope for increased accuracy, and a grapple line" he said as Abigail let out an impressed whistle.

"Nice work" she said as she looked over it before moving around the workbench and towards one of the walls, staying a fair distance away as she aimed at a string of dummy's set up along the wall.

She proceeded to let out a string of arrows at rapid rate, hitting the dummy's in various places before lowering the weapon.

"I must say though, a crossbow does seem a little archaic, don't you think, especially given the other weapons I've got" he said as Abigail turned to him and responded.

"You may be right, but this isn't just a weapon, it's an important historical piece. You may forget, but this is the crossbow that belonged to Van Helsing" she said as she placed the crossbow back on the work desk.

Marcus walked along past her, moving towards a wrapped piece of dark cloth, he unwrapped it to reveal an ornate golden tube that had a thick slightly curved handle with a trigger coming out, followed by the tube getting thinner with the ornate design before thickening again near the top.

Abigail reached down and picked up the tube, inspecting it before Marcus spoke.

"Dragon's breath" he said, causing Abigail to turn to him with a slight look of surprise.

"You managed to get some?" she asked turning her attention back to the tube.

"Wasn't easy, but yeah. Go ahead, try it out" he said before she walked back over to the spot she had been in before, facing the dummies that were across at the wall.

Pointing the tube, she pulled the trigger and a long torrent of bright flame was unleashed, catching the dummies alight as she moved it across before stopping the flow of fire, after she did, the dummies she had lit up fell apart as they continued to burn.

"Nice" she said turning to him with a smile, causing him to smirk.

"Knowing you, you'll be tempted to use the thing as a bloody lighter for your cigars" he said walking back over to the chemistry set.

"I won't confirm or deny that statement" Abigail said as she walked back over near him, before her eyes were drawn to a strange looking orb sitting on raised metal legs, it had several wired attached to it and two round bronze cylinders coming out the top with tubes connecting, it's interior was filled with a green liquid, and it had what looked like a pull string attached to a round bronze ring.

"What's this thing?" she said as she picked it up, causing Marcus to turn and stiffen slightly.

"Please be careful with that, I've been working on that for five years, it's compressed magma from Mount Vesuvius, with pure alkali from the Gobi Desert" he said with slight nervousness, as she inspected it.

"I usually keep it in storage, only working on it from time to time, I still don't know what it's for, but I'm sure it'll come in handy" he continued seriously, causing Abigail to turn to him with a humorous expression.

"You've seriously been working on this for five years and you don't know what it does?"

"I didn't say that. I said I don't know what it's for, what it does is create a light source equal to the intensity of the sun" he explained as Abigail continued looking at it without much enthusiasm.

"You could, I don't know, blind a bunch of people, or flash fry a steak, use your imagination" he said as she placed the orb back down.

"Well if that's all, I think I'll be on my way. I might stop by tomorrow if I'm not too busy" she said preparing to walk back towards the stairs.

"Oh, wait, before I forget" Marcus said, walking over and picking up two small wooden boxes in his hand and bringing them over, Abigail smiled, accepting them before sliding open the lid of the top box and revealing it was full of cigars.

"luis martinez silver selection hamilton robusto's, your brand of choice" he said before continuing. "Oh and check the bottom box"

Abigail moved the bottom box on top and smiled. "Joya de Nicaragua Antano 1970 Gran Consul's, nice I was craving some of these recently" she said before moving the boxes under her left arm and giving Marcus a one armed hug.

"Try not to blow yourself up before my next visit" Abigail said lightly as he merely smiled back at her as she walked back up the stairs, before resuming his work.

Abigail climbed the stairs back up the shop, reaching the covered door, she flipped a switch on the side of the wall to her left, and the fridge once again moved the side, allowing her to walk through and back out into the kitchen before she continued on through the shop and back out onto the street.

(Line Break)

Placing the now empty glass down upon the table, Abigail signalled the waitress who made her way over to the table Abigail had picked out in one of the far corners of the establishment.

After leaving Marcus Abigail had made her way to a pub nearby, and ordered a drink, having made up for the previous nights abstinence.

"Another one of the same?" the waitress asked as she picked up Abigail's glass.

"Yeah" Abigail replied as she picked up her smouldering cigar from an ashtray on her right, placing it in her mouth, picking up her lighter from the table and relighting the cigar, placing the lighter back down as she took a puff.

A minute later the waitress retuned with a newly poured glass filled with amber fluid, Abigail thanked the woman who returned to her work. She didn't drink immediately, letting the glass sit as she watched the condensation grow, reaching forward she was about to raise the glass to her lips when a voice suddenly caught her off guard.

"A little early to be drinking, wouldn't you say, my dear"

Abigail's eyes widened slightly as she turned to see the source of the voice, instantly making her place the glass down and stand to meet him.

"Uncle Giovanni!" she exclaimed as she wrapped her arms around him, bringing him into a hug, the older man smiled warmly as he returned the gesture.

Giovanni Zatara was a middle aged man with a lean figure, he had bright green eyes, a prominent moustache, and was dressed in a distinguished three piece suit with a red bow-tie and a top hat, as well as holding a cane in one of his gloved hands.

"It's been too long since we last saw one another" he said as she moved back and replied.

"Over a year" she said before moving back to her seat, motioning for him to join her.

Zatara sat down opposite her, taking off his top hat and placing it beside him.

"So what brings you to London?" Abigail asked with interest, taking a sip from her glass.

"Partly business, as well as the chance to catch up with you" he replied, before his expression dropped slightly, looking at her with concern and sadness.

"I...heard about the incident in Oregon." he said, causing her to stiffen ever so slightly and grip the glass with more force, though to anyone else watching they wouldn't have picked up the change.

"I'm sorry I didn't come and visit you after it happened, I would have but-"

"Yeah, League business, I know" Abigail said before taking a larger gulp from the glass, before she placed it down on the table, a smile coming to her face again, obviously masking her feelings over him bringing up that incident.

"Don't worry, it's ancient history, I'm fine. So, what kind of business you have going on? I might be able to help" she said leaning back in her seat.

Giovanni frowned slightly, noting her obvious attempt to change the subject, but didn't press the issue, choosing to do as she wished and changed the topic, onto the reason he had really came.

"There has just been an incident the League has found themselves involved in, the aftermath of which has led to a new idea being put into action. A team of sorts comprised of young heroes" Giovanni began as Abigail raised a brow as she listened to him.

(Line Break)

"You've got to be fucking kidding me..." Abigail said, her eyes wide with disbelief at what she had just been told.

"I'm afraid not" Giovanni replied evenly. "We would like you to be apart of this program. The team will have two factions, you will be the eldest involved and the field leader" he continued only for Abigail to speak up.

"You know technically I'm an adult right, being nineteen and everything"

"Still a teenager, besides the second faction is being established to not only strengthen the team overall and regular missions, but it will be tasked with missions and problems suited more to your talents, you will be there in case a magical, supernatural or mystical threat arises, one that the normal team may not be as equipped to handle" Giovanni explained as Abigail still didn't look convinced.

"Why me?" she asked looking him in the eyes. "Surely there's others out there that could be more suited for this"

Giovanni reached across the table and placed his hand on her right one, looking back at her with a sincere look.

"My dear, you are more than capable for this, I have no doubt that you are the right choice. I personally gave the others my recommendation when your name was brought up, though that wasn't really needed after the others had been shown a demonstration of your skills" he said causing her to look down.

"I don't know, I honestly have no idea what to make of this. I mean you know how I feel about the League, the capes and spandex brigade, this little...sidekick kiddie club included" she said as she rolled her eyes before exhaling slightly, looking over the table before taking another sip from her glass, her mind contemplating the situation, and the offer.

She had listened to Giovanni's explanation, and now was mentally going over the whole thing again.

"Take your time, think this through. I'm not here to pressure you, merely inform you that The League wants you for this position, it is your choice to make the final decision, and whatever choice you make, I will respect it" Giovanni said kindly as he stood up and picked up his hat.

"You can contact me as soon as you have made up your mind" he said leaning over and giving her a light kiss on the forehead, before turning and making his way towards the exit.

"Wait..."

Turning at the sound of her voice, Giovanni saw Abigail looking at him as she exhaled.

"We're going to have to go over some terms that I'll want met before I make a final decision" she said as he gave her a small smile, and made his way back to the table.


	4. Chapter 4

**London, England.**

Abigail walked back into her flat, closing the door behind her. She walked over into the living room area and collapsed down on the couch, reaching forward and placing her cigar butt down into the ashtray that was on the coffee table, she then leaned back and stared up at the ceiling.

She had specified her terms to Giovanni, who said he would relay them to the League before getting back to her. Abigail glanced over at several clocks she had on the wall, each had a different time zone on them, she looked at the clocks for a few more moments before standing up and making her way down the hall her room was in, walking past it she continued along until she stopped at the door with the brown circle near the top.

Gripping the brass knob, she turned it to the left until a click was heard. The circles on the door changed colour to green. She then opened the door and stepped through.

* * *

 

**Australia**

Abigail stepped through the door and out into another room, it was a small laundry room, with a washing machine in the corner, beside a large sink which was filled with water that had been filled with clothing softener and several white shirts soaking in it. There was a also a clothes dryer to the left of the washing machine.

Exiting the laundry room to the right, Abigail walked down a carpeted hallway into a kitchen, it had light blue linoleum flooring, a kitchen table to the left after entering through the hall. There was a counter-top with three chairs under it.

The counter-top connected to a sink which branched off the right, beside the sink on it's left was an electric jug. Beside the sink it again branched to the right, forming a rectangular setting, with the stove on that side.

There was a fridge on the far right of the room, beside the stove, and a large cupboard, and there was also a table to her left, with four chairs set up.

A few meters after stepping through from the hallway, to her right were to sliding doors that were closed, Abigail gripped the handles and slid them open, revealing a dark room, lit only by the large television sitting on a table on the far side of the room, up against a long window that had it's blinds down.

To her left was a long couch, in front of it was a coffee table littered with various wrappers and bowls of crumbs. Her attention turned to the snoring coming from the person on the couch.

"Hey, Agregor! Wake up!" Abigail said loudly, causing the being to awaken with a startled cry.

'Agregor' was a small somewhat ethereal like being, it's body was several inches tall like a small doll. As it's body seemed to sprout legs and stand, two arms also sprouted out, one moving up to rub it's eyes, which were round and white with blue pupils.

It seemed to be made out of a flowing purple like energy, which looked similar to fire, it also had spiky orange like 'hair' flowing from the top of it's form.

"Urrrghhh what is it? Couldn't you see I was sleeping" it said, it's voice was male, and with an English accent.

"You've been lounging around here for three days doing nothing but munching out and watching Doctor Who" Abigail said as she picked up a half empty bottle of coca-cola and quickly drinking it down.

"Not true, I also watched Law and Order yesterday" Agregor replied as he stretched out his flowing limbs and yawned.

"Yeah well come on, I'm going to start making dinner, plus there's some things that have come up I think you and Coraline need to hear" she said as she reached down and picked up Agregor before exiting the room, turning off the television as she did.

She walked back through the laundry room before going through the doorway once more.

* * *

 

**London, England.**

Walking back through the door, she closed it behind her and walked down the hall and back into the living area, crossing to the kitchen she placed Agregor down on the counter-top.

Abigail then proceeded to grab some pots from under the stove, and placed them up on it before moving over to the fridge, opening it and sliding open the vegetable crisper, pulling out several carrots, a cauliflower, and some broccoli before moving over to the counter-top and placing the cauliflower and broccoli down upon it before proceeding to cut off the top ends of the carrots before opening one of the drawers and removing a vegetable peeler.

Moving over to the left sink and running some water she began to wash and peel the carrots as Agregor sat down upon the counter-top.

"So, what was it you wanted to say that was so important?" he asked as Abigail glanced over her shoulder.

"You're not going to believe it" she said before exhaling slightly.

* * *

 

After explaining to Agregor what happened, and the meeting with Giovanni, he hadn't believed her to begin with, to Abigail's annoyance.

"Oh this is too much!" Agregor said with amusement. "I can't believe you said yes!"

"I didn't say yes" Abigail interrupted as she placed the now cut up pieces of cauliflower and broccoli into a pot of water and onto one of the stove plates and turned on the heat.

"I only said I would consider joining, if they agreed to my terms and conditions." Abigail said as she put a smaller pot onto another stove plate, this one filled with the cut up carrots.

"Huh, maybe you're overestimating your value a bit there?" Agregor said lightly, causing Abigail to turn and give him a look.

"Hey hey, I'm just saying, they might tell you to take your terms and shove them up your-" Agregor began to say, only to be interrupted as a tea towel was thrown at him by Abigail.

"If they don't agree, then I won't join, simple as that" Abigail said casually as she walked back over to the fridge as Agregor pulled himself out from under the tea towel and threw it to the side.

Abigail walked over and checked the clocks once more, before grabbing her trench-coat that she had placed aside, and quickly put it back on.

"Can you keep watch over the food, I'm going to go pick up Coraline" she said as Agregor hopped down from the counter-top, before his form began to shift and morph.

Agregor began to grow, his body becoming more solid corporeal. This continued until he was around Abigail's size, his body looked less flame like, he looked like a toned purple coloured human, with fully formed arms and legs, his orange hair was still present and spiked up as he stretched out a few times, flexing his fingers.

"Oh, and take those steaks out of the fridge as well" Abigail called as she walked down the hall.

"What am I, your slave" Agregor said rolling his eyes as he opened the fridge and removed the meat.

"Well some would argue-" Abigail began as her head peaked out from the hall with a light-hearted smirk.

"Oh piss off" Agregor shot back light-heartedly in return cutting her off and causing Abigail to chuckle slightly before she walked down the hall.

Stopping at the door, she turned the knob, causing the circle near the top to turn brown, before she opened it and stepped through.

* * *

 

**America, Los Angeles**

Walking out into the hall, Abigail continued through to the main room and along the long wide hall that led to the front door, passing the windows that had their shutters closed now, she reached the door and exited the apartment.

A few minutes passed as she waited on the curb, knowing that the school bus would be stopping here any second now.

Abigail's eyes instantly caught sight of the yellow vehicle as it came around the corner down the street, watching as it drove closer before slowing to a halt.

The bus doors opened and Coraline stepped out to greet her.

"Hey" she said, her voice holding a slight tiredness to it.

"Hey" Abigail replied as she put an arm around the younger girl as they made there way into the apartment.

"How was your day?" Abigail asked, to which Coraline instantly let out an annoyed sound.

"Tiring! There's a substitute gym teacher we had who ran us all into the ground" she groaned out throwing her head back, causing Abigail to chuckle.

"Well you might get a good night's sleep tonight, if you're already tired." Abigail said as they entered the apartment, closing the door behind them, they made their way to the hall, stopping at the door with the brown circle on it before Abigail opened it and they walked through.

* * *

 

**England, London**

Stepping through the door, Abigail closed it behind them. Coraline turned to head up to her room, Abigail speaking up before she did.

"I'm making dinner, but you can heat it up later if you want, I know you won't be hungry right after coming back from school. Plus, there's something else I'd like to discuss" Abigail said, to which Coraline nodded before entering her room.

Walking back through to the kitchen area, she took off her trench-coat, placing it over a chair near the counter-top.

Agregor was near the stove, cooking several pieces of steak, the sizzling of the meat filling the area as did it's scent.

"Let me take it from here" she said as she walked over, Agregor moving and allowing her to hold the pan. "You ended up burning the steaks last time" she said lightly, causing Agregor respond.

"Sorry if I forgot you like medium-rare" he said with sarcasm as he leaned back on the counter-top as Abigail turned the steaks, making sure not to let one side cook for too long.

A few minutes passed before Abigail took the steaks off the pan, and placed them on some paper towel to rest, as she did, Coraline came out into the lounge room area, dressed in lighter clothing, she gave a satisfied moan at the smell of food wafting from the kitchen.

"That smells good." she said before looking at Agregor.

"Welcome back, I was worried we'd have to send out a search party" she said jokingly, to which Agregor merely rolled his eyes and smiled at the girl.

"I go and enjoy myself with some quality television, and suddenly everyone's on my case"

"Well it's kind of warranted if you're gone for three straight days and had probably been sitting on that couch the whole time" Abigail shot back, before turning to Coraline.

"So, about what I said I wanted to discuss" she began, as Coraline's attention turned to her.

* * *

 

"That is AWESOME!" Coraline said with excitement, after having heard Abigail's explanation. "You're gonna be in The Justice League!"

"No, No, first of all, it's a subsidiary of The Justice League, and secondly I haven't agreed to anything yet. I'm still waiting for their response to my conditions" Abigail replied, though Coraline didn't seem to hear her as she continued to hop around in excitement.

"Do you think you'll meet Superman, or Wonder Woman-" Coraline began before gasping and her eyes widening slightly. "Can I meet them!"

Abigail placed her hands on the younger girl and held her in place, looking at her with a even expression. "Calm down there blue" she said getting her attention.

"Look, I don't know what's going to happen yet, nor have I made a final decision. I'm waiting for Uncle Giovanni's response from The League, and after I get that, I'll make up my mind. And when I do, I promise you'll be the first to know" she said as Coraline calmed, taking a breath before looking at her with an inquisitive expression.

"What?" Abigail asked with a raised brow, noticing Coraline's look.

"Are you gonna get a superhero outfit?" she asked with genuine interest.

Abigail stared at her for several seconds before giving a small laugh.

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah, you know like a cape or something?" Coraline asked as Abigail let out an amused scoff and moved back over to the kitchen area.

"What? It's a serious question?"

* * *

 

It had been several hours since Abigail and Coraline had returned home, since then Coraline had eaten dinner, and showered before going to bed, Abigail's earlier assessment of her being tired had come to fruition.

Abigail had eaten awhile later, before she had retired away to her own room, changing into her pyjamas. She was no reclining on her bed, resting her back up against the headboard with her legs outstretched, she had a book in her hand that she was reading through, every so often her eyes would wander to her left bedside night-stand, where her phone sat, expecting a call or a text.

Agregor meanwhile, had returned to his smaller size only a few inches tall, and was watching the television that Abigail had on top of a desk directly in front of her bed across the room against the wall.

His attention was focused on the screen, which at his current size, was similar to going to the cinema.

Agregor's attention however was interrupted as he felt a weight poke against his back, and turned to see Abigail had nudged him with her left bare foot.

Abigail let out a light sigh before speaking, her eyes still on her book. "I could really use a foot rub" she said still not looking at him as she scanned across the page.

"Very interesting" Agregor said flatly, turning his attention back to the television for several seconds, before he felt her foot nudge him again.

"Come ooonnnn" Abigail said, adding a slight whine to her tone, causing Agregor's right eye to twitch before he replied.

"You want a massage, go to a masseuse"

"Hey, I've been walking around all day, my feet are sore" she said looking down at him and giving him another nudge.

"Well it's not my fault you don't own a car! Or that you're bike isn't fixed yet. It's also not my fault you decided to walk everywhere, every heard of public transport?" he shot back before attempting to turn back to the TV once again, only for her to nudge him again, slightly harder.

"Come oooonnn" she said teasingly. "I though you didn't mind pleasing me"

Agregor turned to her with a light glare. "Hey, you're the one who likes feet, not me. I just want to watch TV" he said before turning back to the screen.

For several seconds nothing happened, Agregor let out a pleased exhale as his attention was set back on the screen. This was cut off however as Abigail suddenly pushed him off the end of the bed with her foot.

"You really are a bitch sometimes!" Agregor's annoyed tone called up after a few seconds, before shuffling was heard, the door to Abigail's bedroom seemed to open on it's own before Agregor's small form walked out into the hall.

"I'm going to watch it in the lounge room" he said before disappearing from her sight.

"...You know I can just follow you out there, right?" she called out after him as she chuckled sightly.

She was about to hop up and go through with her words, before she heard her phone's ringtone and instantly paused.

Turning to see her phone ringing on her night-stand, it took her several second to react, reaching over and picking it up, again pausing momentarily before answering.

"...Hello..."

For the next few minutes she was on the phone, listening and replying, questioning and answering. The minutes dragged on until she had been on the call for over half an hour before ending the call.

When she did, she placed the phone down beside her and recline back on the bed, her head resting against the headboard before she exhaled deeply.

"I need a bloody drink"


	5. Chapter 5

Abigail had awoken the next morning, her mind still processing the call she had received last night.

It had been from Zatara, telling her that The League had accepted the terms she had set, though some begrudgingly. Abigail knew they would try and fight her on some of them, though she would cross that bridge when she came to it.

She had told Coraline and Agregor, who both had mixed reactions, Coraline had once again launched into a fangirl episode regarding the Justice League, while Agregor had made several wisecracks, none of which ended in his favour. Though after a few hours, Abigail had gotten Coraline off to school before returning to England and preparing herself for the day to come, she was to meet Zatara who would take her to the team's headquarters, apparently an old base of the League's that had been in disuse for several years, Mount Justice.

Abigail was now reclining back on the lounge watching television, waiting for Zatara to arrive. Agregor had gone off and taken a nap, despite the time of day, the ethereal being telling her to fill him in on her day when she returned.

Abigail was currently nursing a cup of coffee in one hand, that she had mixed with a few shots of butterscotch schnapps, and the other was holding onto a halfway done cigar.

Exhaling a puff of smoke as her eyes drifted over to several clocks on one wall, she turned back to the television, not really interested in what was on as she took a sip from the mug, enjoying the taste of the warm liquid as it travelled down her throat.

A knock at the door caught her attention, making her pick up the remote and turn off the television before standing and making her way to the door, opening it to reveal Giovanni standing there.

He smiled upon seeing her, and Abigail immediately turned. "Just let me grab my coat and we can get going" she said as she downed the rest of her coffee and placed it on the kitchen counter-top before walking over to the lounge and retrieving her maroon trench coat, putting it on and making her way back to towards the door, closing it behind her as she did.

"I'm glad we were able to get you on board, my dear" Giovanni said as they walked along side one another.

"Yeah, well let's just see how this goes. It's too early to be celebrating just yet Uncle Giovanni" Abigail replied before placing her cigar back in her mouth.

"I'm sure you will do well." he said assuringly, causing Abigail to shake her head.

"It's not me I'm worried about" she replied dryly as they exited out onto the street.

* * *

 

Mount Justice

After they arrived at Mount Justice, Abigail had been led inside by Giovanni, who gave her some background on the base and it's history.

"Well, I think it's time we go and meet the others" he said after they'd spent nearly half an hour talking. However before they could go anywhere, he suddenly paused as a beep could be heard, Abigail saw him put a finger to his ear.

"Yes, this is Zatara...I see, no no, I can be there in a few minutes." he said before looking back at Abigail.

"I'm afraid something has come up that I must attend to. Are you able to find your way to where we we're going to meet the others?" he asked before a deeper voice spoke up catching both of their attention.

"She is welcome to come with us"

Abigail and Giovanni turned to see J'onn J'onzz, also known as The Martian Manhunter, he having been the one who spoke up. Beside him was a teenage girl with similar coloured green skin, she had long red hair and freckles on her cheeks. She was wearing a blue skirt and white short sleeved top with a red X across it, along with a blue cape with matching blue gloves and ankle boots.

"We were just on our way to meet with Batman and the team ourselves" J'onn continued politely.

"Thank you J'onn, I wouldn't want her getting lost" Zatara replied, causing Abigail to cross her arms and let out a slight scoff.

"I'm not a little kid Uncle Giovanni"

Zatara merely smiled before leaning over and giving her a light kiss on the forehead.

"I shall see you later then" he said before heading off away from the trio, disappearing around a corner in haste.

Abigail turned back to the two martian's as J'onn spoke. "We should be going" he said before they began to walk ahead, Abigail joining them at the other teenagers side.

"Hello" The green girl said to Abigail, smiling brightly. "I'm M'gann, M'gann M'orzz" she said offering her hand to Abigail, who shook it in a friendly gesture.

"But you can call me Megan if you like, I picked out a similar sounding Earth name now that I'm staying here"

"Nice to meet you too. I'm Abigail Constantine" Abigail said introducing herself genuinely.

"I heard from my Uncle J'onn that you'd be part of the team. You're the leader?" M'gann asked with interest.

"Eh, something like that" Abigail said scratching her neck. "It hasn't been properly decided yet whether I'm going to be the overall ground leader of the team, or simply the leader of my faction"

"Oh that's right!" M'gann said with excitement and awe in her voice. "You're a sorceress"

"Something of the sort" Abigail said with a small grin as they continued on.

"If you have time later, The League has several dossiers on potential recruits for the team." J'onn said turning to Abigail. "As well as one I have compiled personally"

Abigail merely nodded. "I'll give 'em a look through later when I have the time"

The three continued walking until coming to room up ahead with four teens standing with their backs to them, Abigail could also see Batman, Aquaman, and The Flash in front of them.

Aquaman was in the middle of speaking to them when the three came into earshot.

"But Cadmus proves the bad guys are getting smarter. Batman needs a team that can operate on the sly" Aquaman said before Batman continued.

"The six of you will be that team, for the moment at least" The Dark Knight explained.

Abigail watched as the youngest teen reacted, still unaware of their presence.

"Cool!...Wait, six?"

Batman raised his head slightly, looking directly at Abigail, J'onn and M'gann, causing the younger teen and the three others to turn around in their direction.

"This is the Martian Manhunter's niece, Ms Martian" Batman said referring to M'gann.

"Hi" M'gann greeted with a small wave.

"And this is Abigail Constantine" Batman said looking at Abigail, causing the younger teen in sunglasses to glance up at him with a questioning look.

"Is she the daughter of John Constantine?" he asked curiously, receiving a nod of confirmation from Batman, Abigail figured that was Robin.

"I've learned it's not always a good thing when my dad's reputation precedes him, or me for that matter" Abigail said lightly.

"I'm liking this gig more every minute" the read headed teen said before turning to her and M'gann.

"Welcome aboard, I'm Kid Flash. That's Robin and Aqualad" he said pointing to Robin and the darker skinned older teen with platinum blonde hair behind him. "It's cool if you forget their names" he said placing his hands on his hips.

"I'm honoured to be included" M'gann said clasping her hands in front of her, Kid Flash and the others made their way over to them, except for the fourth boy, a teen with black hair and wearing a black T-shirt, one Abigail noted with a red 'S' shield worn most commonly by Superman, as well as the teens resemblance to the Man of Steel.

"Hey muscles, you're not excluded or anything you know" Abigail said speaking up and motioning for him to join them.

The teen in questioned looked up, slightly surprised, before walking over to join them.

"This is Superboy" Robin said motioning towards the taller teen with his head.

As soon as he approached them, Abigail saw M'gann's white shirt change colour to a matching black like Superboy's, as well as her cape disappearing.

"...I like your T-shirt" M'gann said lightly, causing Superboy to smile slightly in return.

Kid Flash sped over to his side, as Robin nudged him in the arm as the three boys smiled at the new arrivals.

Abigail couldn't help but role her eyes slightly at their behaviour, before hearing Aqualad speak up, the dark skinned teen having moved over beside J'onn.

"Today is the day"

* * *

 

Abigail was sitting in the lounge area of the base, it was connected to the kitchen which was currently empty, though the oven was on. There were several files scattered across the coffee table in front of her as she flipped through one slowly, it was the file that J'onn have given her specifically, she was going to read for another half hour before heading back to London.

She had placed an ash tray on the table, and had already gone through two full cigars, she was considered lighting up a third one as she continued through the file. giving a small sigh of frustration. It had been a full day and now all she wanted to do was go home, relax and blow of some steam.

Maybe try out that new vibrator she bought the other day, the one with the ribbed sides.

Or maybe get Agregor to do all the work and she could just lay back and enjoy it, hmmm.

Saving those thought for later however, she turned her attention back to the file once again.

"... Daniel Murray huh" Abigail said to herself, reading the name as she browsed through it, however she was brought from her thoughts as M'Gann entered the room.

"How many files have you looked through now?" M'gann asked floating over and sitting on the couch beside Abigail.

"About a dozen" Abigail said, pointing to the floor beside the coffee table where twelve files were all scattered haphazardly, like they'd been thrown.

"Well just take your time and I'm sure you'll make the right decisions" M'gann said with a supportive smile.

"Yeah, though I am not looking forward to going through the mountain of potential recruits The League has lined up, there's still more folders I'm gonna get tomorrow." Abigail said with fatigue lacing her tone.

M'gann was about to respond when she suddenly had a look of realisation and floated back over quickly to the kitchen area, opening the oven and retrieving a baking dish.

Abigail glanced over her shoulder to see M'gann preparing something, and a minute later she returned with a plate with several cut slices on it, and two cups of milk.

"I wanted to try out some more baking, so I made banana bread" M'gann said as she placed the plate down on the table beside several of the folders along with the cups. The slices were still hot, and looked a little burnt around the edges, but not too bad.

Placing the folder down, Abigail reached over and picked up one of the slices, bringing it to her mouth and taking a medium sized bite, reaching for the cup as she did.

M'gann watched with anticipation as Abigail chewed, seemingly taking in the flavour and texture of the slice before swallowing, taking a sip of milk afterwards.

"A little crisp on the outside, but it's pretty good, nice job" Abigail said genuinely, causing M'gann to smile with relief at her success.

"You know, you're all right Meg" Abigail said clapping her left hand on M'gann's shoulder lightly, causing the green skinned girl to blush slightly at the praise, as well as the nickname.

 

As Abigail continued eating the slice, M'gann couldn't help but notice the lighter that sat on the table.

It looked like a windproof zippo lighter, the colour of it was a matte red and it had a black bird pictured on both sides.

M'gann reached forward and picked it up, feeling the cool smooth metal in her hands as she turned it around.

"That was a gift" Abigail said eyeing the lighter before taking another sip from the cup. "From someone very close to me" she said as M'gann looked over at Abigail.

"It's enchanted and magically customised, they made sure that the lighter would not run out of fuel. As well as being able to work, even in a vacuum or underwater" Abigail said as M'gann looked at it with surprise.

"Also, if I were to light something with it underwater, say, a rope for instance, it would still burn, despite being wet." Abigail explained as she reached for another piece of banana bread.

"That's incredible" M'gann said as she reached for a piece of Banana bread herself, though her eyes lingered on the bird design on both sides. "What kind of bird is that?" she asked curiously.

Abigail's gaze flickered to the lighter before she looked ahead, a slightly far off look in her eyes as she answered.

"It's a Raven"


	6. Chapter 6

**(The Next Day)**

**Mount Justice**

The room was silent, save for the small ticking of a wind up clock that Abigail had placed on the table, she glanced at it every now and then as she sat on the metal stool.

The room she was in was empty, save for a single long table, and two chairs, both on opposite ends of each other, the distance between her and the young man sitting across from her seemed a lot further than it was.

In her hand was a file, one of the same files that she had looked over the previous night.

Daniel Murray

He was seventeen years old, originally from Dublin, Ireland. He was also the potential recruit that had been referred to her by Martian Manhunter.

The teen across from her was tall and lean, though his weight seemed more than his appearance let on as Abigail noted when he sat down, the creak of the metal chair giving it away.

He was wearing a T-shirt concealed under a cheap hoodie, tracksuit pants and sneakers. His hair was straight and obviously unprofessionally cut, like he had taken a pair of scissors and cut it himself, though it was kept out of his face.

Abigail noted the his dark black hair went down to his ears in length. But that wasn't the most eye catching thing, the hair looked fake, like a cheap wig stuck on someone's head.

His face was narrow and sunken with high cheekbones, he looked like he hadn't eaten in sometime, and his eyes were a sickly green colour.

And then there was his skin.

Similar to his hair, the skin seemed artificial, there was a light tan to it, but Abigail could see it looked like a thin rubber film stretched over a mass.

Though she knew the real reason for this, he was wearing a 'suit' that was made to look like human skin, as well as the hair. This was due to his abilities and his physiology, which had changed after an event several months back.

Having read his file several times, Abigail learnt that Daniel grew up the son of a world famous archaeologist couple, that were world renowned for recovering ancient artefacts, regardless of the risks. Over the course of twenty years, Conner Murray and Laura McKinley, Daniel's parents, travelled the globe.

This however left little time for their son, who without any parental influence and in love with his parents fame, was kind of an asshole growing up. He bullied kids, tormented anyone who tried to mess with him, and even ruined several kids lives. To him, life was a game and his parents money and fame made him its main character. His parents loved him deeply, and even though he was a terrible kid they did their best to try and change him for the better. Despite his attitude, Daniel did love his family, and when the opportunity arose to travel to Saudi Arabia on an expedition he jumped at the chance.

Daniel's father had made a career searching for 'mystical' civilisations, the expedition Daniel went along with sought out The Pillars of Iram, the city of brass.

Said to reside in the Rub al Khali desert, it was believed to be a myth, one that was located deep in the desert. Never the less, an expedition of 300 men went into the desert.

Daniel was the only survivor.

The trip started strong, with everyone in high spirits and no issues. However, after over two weeks of searching and supplies starting to run low, the group's morale was low, and to make matters worse, they were besieged by a harsh sandstorm.

When it cleared, the group witnessed a beautiful sight. A city of brass stood before them, as if it had always been there. Rushing through the gates for what was sure to be the discovery of a lifetime, they had no idea what they'd found.

Markings on the wall showed signs of a deity the former inhabitants worshipped, different from any previous religion that was documented.

Daniel meanwhile had gone off on his own, his own inexperience combined with his desire to uncover something first made him foolhardy.

However, things changed when he did find a hidden tomb, stumbling upon it by accident, inside the tomb was a metallic sarcophagus that seemed to call to him, Daniel considered going back and getting his parents, but again his ego drove him forward.

The sarcophagus opened with little effort, and Daniel found the book that would change his life.

It was an ancient thing that looked monstrous. It was bound in what appeared to be human flesh, a dark brown cover that looked stitched together that had a screaming face on the cover.

Just touching the book felt wrong, but believing that it was just his nerves, Daniel opened the book.

The moment he did, all sound within the city ceased, and second later screams filled the air. Monsters seemed to flow from the shadows, as everyone ran in fear, only to be attacked and devoured by the creatures.

The survivors, including Daniel and his parents, ran from the city as more of their colleagues were killed, by luck alone they managed to get away.

What was once a group of hundreds, now reduced to less than twenty. However something was wrong, as the group couldn't leave the area, whenever they would run away into the desert, they always ended back at the city gates.

When Daniel finally looked at the book again he heard faint whispers and murmurs coming from behind the covers, and before anyone could make sense of what had just occurred,the creatures descended upon the party once more.

This time, Daniel and his parents were the only survivors, the moment the last of their team had been devoured, everything fell silent once more as the monsters faded away.

It was wrong to think things were over, as suddenly the book shot open, the sounds of screaming filled the air as numerous hands grasped the trio and pulled them into the book itself.

Quickly separated from his family, Daniel's perception was blinded before he found himself standing before another creature, surrounded by a black void of nothingness. The creature towered over him, it's body was a mass of writhing tentacles with roaming eyes and a maw of teeth that seemed to shift around it's body like water.

Daniel couldn't move, his body seemingly paralysed as the creature's roaming eyes rested on him before unleashing a loud roar that made Daniel's blood run cold before charging towards him.

That was all he could recall before being rendered unconscious, awakening to find himself back in Ireland, in his families home.

For a few brief moments, he thought it had all been some horrid dream, and that the expedition hadn't taken place yet.

However he was proven wrong as he was overcome with pain that encompassed all of his senses, his body contorted and thrashed around for several minutes as he howled out in agony, his muscles and bones seemed to be on fire as he lay writhing on the floor.

By the time the process stopped, his body had been changed. No longer was he human in appearance, but a mass of black tentacles. Reacting in horror at the sight of the tentacled mass that was his new form, bright green glowing eyes starred widely before he collapsed on the ground.

For three days and nights he didn't eat, he didn't sleep, and he didn't go out of his room for fear of what he'd become.

However his solitude was broken, when a visitor arrived at the house, his grandmother has been concerned over the families lack of communication, knowing of their frequent expeditions. Though she had expected them to have returned by now.

Daniel had debated what to do as his grandmother entered there home, internally freaking out as he tried to remain silent, though failing as he knocked over a vase.

The sound of the pottery breaking alerted his grandmother, who ventured further into the house, upon reaching his room she called out to him, hoping to hear a response.

Hearing her desperate tone, Daniel spoke up and said he had returned, though still didn't unlock his door. Though his grandmother refused to leave until he came out and explained what had happened.

He weighed his options for almost half an hour, he had no clue how she would react, let alone what would happen afterwards, how he was going to fix what had happened to him.

After thinking it over, he made his decision. Telling his grandmother not to be afraid, he slowly opened the door and revealed himself.

His grandmother had always been a caring woman, with a tough resolve that he believed could stand up to almost anything.

...The look of horror on her face when she saw him would forever haunt him to the rest of his days.

The elderly woman staggered back in fear, letting out a scream before clutching her chest, Daniel tried to move to help her, which only made her scramble back faster, and trip down the stairs of the houses second storey, falling down and landing on the hard floor.

When he rushed down there to her side, she was already dead.

Several days later, the surrounding homes had sent several complaints to the police regarding violent sounds coming from inside the house, as well as an inhuman figure that was skulking about.

Coincidently, The Martian Manhunter had been in Dublin on League business, and had become curious of the various reports, as well as the fact of the families strange disappearance. When he entered the home, he found furniture thrown over the house, dark stains splattered on the wall on the wall.

And a shabby looking figure in the corner rocking while muttering under his breath.

Seeing the troubled young man, J'onn had approached cautiously, before seeing his form in the light. Daniel looked up to see J'onn standing there, but couldn't form a response.

The Martian however had picked up on his emotional turmoil, and simply waited for him to speak.

It didn't take long for Daniel to break down, confiding in him what he'd seen and what had happened to him. J'onn, seeing the teens distress, as well as his need for assistance, took him away from the home and back to one of The League's safe houses, contacting and informing them of the situation.

Over the coming days, Daniel tried to get a better grasp of his new form, and discovered he could morph and reshape his body into various shapes, though with great difficulty. J'onn assisted him where he could, but the issue of finding a way to turn him back to his former self was something that would take knowledge and abilities the Martian did not posses.

When the idea of forming the team came about, J'onn put Daniel's name forward for consideration.

And here he was, sitting across from the person who would decide his fate. He hadn't thought the person he would be meeting would be so young, not much older than himself.

Nor was she dressed like he imagined someone would in their meeting, though in her defence neither was he.

She had barely said a word during their time together in the room, though she didn't seem to need to, her gaze seemed to bore straight through him, it honestly was more than a little intimidating.

"So..." Daniel spoke up, before clearing his throat, his eyes darting away from hers as he tried to break the long standing silence between them.

"What do you think...of me, I mean, and all that" he said gesturing to the file.

Abigail didn't answer immediately, taking another few seconds before letting out a small exhale and leaning back in her chair.

"I think you're a fucking idiot"


	7. Chapter 7

_**(Last time on Young Justice Dark)** _

_"So..." Daniel spoke up, before clearing his throat, his eyes darting away from hers as he tried to break the long standing silence between them._

_"What do you think...of me, I mean, and all that" he said gesturing to the file._

_Abigail didn't answer immediately, taking another few seconds before letting out a small exhale and leaning back in her chair._

_"I think you're a fucking idiot"_

* * *

 

**Mount Justice**

For a moment the room was silent, Daniel stared back at Abigail silently before his eyes narrowed in confusion.

"What?" he replied with confusion.

Abigail merely maintained her expression with her arms folded.

"You heard me, I think you're a fucking idiot" she repeated in the same tone.

"Hey! Wait a second, you can't-" Daniel began, only for Abigail to cut him off.

"You expect me to feel sorry for you" she stated plainly as she stood up. "You expect just because I know you're cursed and what you went through, that I'll allow you to join the team and start diligently working on a way to turn you back to normal, isn't that what you were expecting?" she asked rhetorically, walking to the side of the table.

"Well in all honestly, you have no one to blame for your current condition but yourself." she said narrowing her eyes. "You may not have been the one to propose the expedition, but you're actions were the reason for all those people losing there lives, as well as for your cursed form. You want me to feel sorry for you? Hah!" she scoffed, shaking her head.

"You used to treat people like shit, thinking just because you had your parents money and name that you were better than everyone else. And then you decide to tag along on trying to find the city, only for your own selfish reasons" she said walking closer to him.

Daniel had his hands clenched at his sides as he starred up at the blonde.

Abigail noticed his growing anger, but it didn't deter her.

"There are certain places that are hidden for a reason, did you ever think that?" she asked.

"But you just had to seek it out. That city only reveals itself once every century" Abigail said, causing Daniel to look at her with slight confusion, his anger dissipating momentarily.

"The civilisation that existed there centuries ago was wiped out, however a group of sorcerers used the cities mystical properties to bind those creatures you saw, trapping them there, it was meant to be a prison! And you assholes had to go and fuck it up!"

"The book you found was powering the magic that kept the creatures at bay, and yeah it was also meant to be locked away there, to keep it from falling into the wrong hands, or from hurting anyone else, but your arrogance and ego saw too it that all of those men and women in your expedition were killed, and you now look like a tentacle porn lovers walking wet dream!" Abigail said now leaning in towards his face.

"You have no idea what you have unleashed, nor the effort and time it will take to rectify your actions" she said glaring at him. "As well as the body count it will cause"

Daniel was silently fuming at her words, before she continued.

"As far as I'm concerned, you deserve everything that has happened to you" she said before turning away and walking back across the room towards the door.

"...you heartless bitch!"

Daniel stood up, the chair he had been sitting on falling on the ground as his hands squeezed into fists.

"You have no fucking idea what I've been through, the hellish torment!" he exclaimed angrily, though Abigail didn't respond to his words, still walking towards the exit.

"You have no idea what suffering or loss is!" he yelled out.

Abigail stopped dead in her tracks as soon as those words left his mouth, her body turning as still as a statue as her eyes widened.

_**(Flashback)** _

_"Mummy!" a five year old Abigail exclaimed tearfully, her small hands shaking the blonde women, desperately trying to get a response._

_"Wake up! Please wake up!" she screamed out._

_"Abigail..." Zatara said sadly, tears falling from his eyes as well as he clutched the woman's body in his lap._

_"No!...No...Mummy!" she cried out before a pair of arms wrapped around her, she looked to see her father had pulled her into a tight embrace._

_Instead of fighting it, she buried her head into his chest and bawled her eyes out as he held her_.

_**(Flashback end)** _

Abigail's own hands had curled into fists and where shaking slightly, Daniel's words bringing up unpleasant memories.

"...shut up..." she said quietly.

"Don't tell me to shut up! You're perfectly fine running your mouth about things you wouldn't understand, well you listen to me-" Daniel began, not noticing Abigail's shift in demeanour.

Meanwhile Abigail's eyes clenched shut as she tried to block him out.

_**(Flashback)** _

_"Elisa..." Abigail said tearfully, holding the woman up off the sand, she could feel the blood soaking through onto her arms as she did so._

_The dark haired woman looked up at Abigail with a soft and caring expression, despite her injuries, smiling at the younger girl._

_The red triangular markings on her cheeks and forehead indistinguishable from the blood that had stained her skin, despite Abigail's best attempts to wipe it away._

_"It's not working...I can't heal you..." Abigail sobbed out painfully._

_"It's ok..." Elisa said weakly, bringing her right hand up weakly._

_"No! No it's not ok!" Abigail exclaimed back, clenching her eyes shut. "I..I don't know what to do! Please don't leave me!...don't leave me here all alone!"_

_"Abigail..." Elisa said as her voice became weaker, Abigail could feel the strength fading from her by the second._

_"My dear sweet Abigail" she said as her right hand raised slowly and pressed into Abigail's chest. "I will never leave you, not truly. I will always be with you" she said softly as Abigail placed her hand on top of Elisa's._

_"W-We...We were going to get out of here! I was going to free you from this place!" Abigail cried sorrowfully._

_Elisa merely looked at her with a serene expression, her hand coming up to rest on Abigail's cheek as she motioned for her to lean down._

_When she did, Elisa pressed her lips to the younger girls, both of them closing there eyes and savouring the moment and the feeling of each other's body close to another, before finally after several moments Elisa moved back as she spoke._

_"Abigail...don't you see..." she said weakly, though her face still held a peaceful look, Abigail's eyes rested on hers, as she could see the life fade from them._

_"I am free..."_

_And with those final words, the last of her strength left her, and her eyes closed for the last time, Abigail watching as her body went limp._

_"...No..." Abigail whispered out, the heat from the blazing sun and the sand beneath her didn't faze her as she was focused purely on the body in her arms._

_"Elisa..."_

_A sudden wind began to pick up around Abigail, the sand began to move with it, circling around them._

_It grew faster and more powerful as the sand raised up in a tunnel surrounding them._

_"No.." Abigail said louder, her eyes opening to reveal them glowing a golden amber. "No!.."_

_The sand grew more violent as Abigail's clothing blew around in the wind before she threw her head back and unleashed a primal roar._

_"NO!"_

_**(Flashback end)** _

Before Daniel could finish his sentence, he was suddenly thrown back across the room and into the metal wall with force, denting it slightly from his impact.

His body was being held up by seemingly nothing, he opened his eyes and looked to see Abigail had now turned around, and she looked furious.

"You know nothing of suffering, child!" she growled out, raising a hand in his direction swiftly.

Daniel felt his body be pressed further into the wall, and small tears appeared in his skin suit and clothing, causing small pieces of tentacles to emerge, his entire body felt like it was being constricted and the breath was forced out of him.

"You have no fucking clue what loss is!" she exclaimed moving her hand and sending him slamming into the wall to their right, making him cry out as his skin suit tore even more, revealing more of the tentacled mass within.

"I spoke the truth, everything you have been through was your own fault! You have no one else to blame!" she spat out as he slammed down onto the floor, causing the face section of his skin suit to split, revealing the glowing green of his eyes in full.

"You think you can push me around! To pressure me into doing what you want, just like you used to do with your peers!" she growled out before with a flex of her hand his skin suit was shredded, revealing his true form on full display, the mass of black tentacles slithered and squirmed as his eyes starred at her.

"I will not be coerced, or guilt tripped into helping a snivelling little sack of shit like you!" she shouted before with a thrust of her hand, Daniel was pushed once more into the far wall before falling to the ground.

Abigail starred at his downed body for a few seconds before taking a calming breath and narrowing her eyes.

"You aren't worth my time" she said flatly, before turning and walking out the door.

However before Abigail could exit down the hall, she quickly ducked to the side, just as several tentacles extended where she was moments before, slamming into the wall outside the room, Abigail looked back to see Daniel standing upright, a long strand of an 'arm' extending out where she once was.

His eyes were narrowed into a glare and with a slight movement, the tentacle detached from the wall and towards her quickly.

However he was not counting on Abigail catching the tentacle with her right arm.

When he tried to pull it back from her grasp, Abigail wound it around her wrist and narrowed her own eyes.

* * *

 

J'onn and Giovanni had just arrived at Mount Justice from the Watchtower, and were now on their way to check in on Abigail and Daniel, there meeting having started over two hours ago, and both League members were curious to see how things had turned out.

However as soon as they drew close to the section of the cave that they knew Abigail and Daniel were, they stopped in shock.

The entire hallway was covered in dents and slashes, severed tentacles were lying around in random portions, and black ooze coated the walls, as well as what looked like scorch marks.

Moving forward now with haste, they saw one wall had a large hole in it, seemingly from something being thrown through it with force.

They once again paused as they saw Abigail come into view, walking around the corner, she didn't look hurt at all, and was walking at a normal calm pace, the only thing out of place was the black ooze coating her white shirt and some of it in her hair.

"Abigail, what on earth happened here!" Giovanni exclaimed in shock, only for her to glance at him without stopping her stride.

"He's not accepted" she said flatly as she passed the two league members and continued on her way.

J'onn and Giovanni only took a moment to ponder her words before they both headed forward with concern, turning the corner and seeing more of the same display of the previous one.

They kept going until coming to one large room that hadn't been refurbished yet.

The room looked even worse than the previous sights, as well as another large hole having been made in the floor, breaching through to a lower level, both men floated down through the hole, and saw a shocking sight.

Daniel lay on the floor, surrounded in a pool of black ooze, several large sections of his tentacled body lay around him limply.

The only sign of life being that a slow sound of breathing was heard.

* * *

 

**London, England**

It had been several hours since she'd left Mount Justice, and now Abigail was seated in a pub with a large mug full of cold beer in front of her. She had returned briefly to her flat and cleaned herself up before venturing out once more.

She wasn't concerned for Daniel, knowing that his bodies cursed form would regenerate the injuries she had left him with.

His pride however, that would not be so easily fixed.

Abigail have a small snort of amusement at the thought as she took a small gulp from the glass, enjoying the cool feeling of the liquid travelling down her throat before picking up the cigar she had placed in the ashtray on the table and taking a long puff.

However her relaxed mood didn't last as she saw three figures suddenly come into view across the bar.

Zatara, J'onn, and Batman were standing there, not gaining much attention from the few patrons spread out across the establishment despite the fact they stood out so clearly.

Giving a drawn out sigh as she saw them approach.

"...Oh bollocks" she said to herself before downing the rest of her beer.


	8. Chapter 8

_**(Last time on Young Justice Dark)** _

_It had been several hours since she'd left Mount Justice, and now Abigail was seated in a pub with a large mug full of cold beer in front of her. She had returned briefly to her flat and cleaned herself up before venturing out once more._

_She wasn't concerned for Daniel, knowing that his bodies cursed form would regenerate the injuries she had left him with._

_His pride however, that would not be so easily fixed._

_Abigail have a small snort of amusement at the thought as she took a small gulp from the glass, enjoying the cool feeling of the liquid travelling down her throat before picking up the cigar she had placed in the ashtray on the table and taking a long puff._

_However her relaxed mood didn't last as she saw three figures suddenly come into view across the bar._

_Zatara, J'onn, and Batman were standing there, not gaining much attention from the few patrons spread out across the establishment despite the fact they stood out so clearly._

_Giving a drawn out sigh as she saw them approach._

_"...Oh bollocks" she said to herself before downing the rest of her beer._

* * *

 

Abigail now walked along the street, the three League members walking alongside her as they made their way back to her flat.

"If you want me to apologise, that's not going to happen" she said flatly.

"You injured Daniel, if it wasn't for his cursed forms regenerative abilities, there's not telling if he would have survived" Batman said starring at her with a frown as they walked.

Abigail wasn't affected at all by his tone or the look he was sending her underneath his mask.

"Abigail-" Giovanni began, only for Abigail to cut him off.

"Look I don't care if you want to lecture me or not, I don't want him on the team. You know the kind of mess that he's caused uncle, and the dangers of that book, I shouldn't have to explain it to you. Especially not after what happened the last time" she said as the group approached her apartment, though as soon as she said that, Batman came to a halt, causing the other two League members to do the same, though Giovanni had a more troubled expression on his face as he did.

"What is she talking about?" Batman said turning to Giovanni inquisitively.

Abigail turned around, her gaze switching between Batman and Zatara, a look of realisation coming to her face as she narrowed her eyes.

"You...You didn't tell them, did you..." she said slowly, stating more than questioning as Giovanni gave a soft sigh.

"I had hoped it could have been avoided." he said simply, not meeting her gaze.

Abigail let out a slight sigh, pinching the bridge of her nose for a few moments before moving her hand back down to her side.

"Let's go inside. It seems we have some things to discuss after all" Abigail said before turning once more and walking ahead.

* * *

 

The group entered Abigail's flat, walking though the door before it closed behind them. Abigail didn't stop her stride as she continued through and past the kitchen and into the lounge room area, as she did a loud gasp was heard.

Coraline, who was seated on the couch with a variety of text books and school work spread about, was now looking at their guests with wide eyes and mouth agape.

"Y-You're..." she began pointing at Batman only for Abigail to speak up.

"Focus on your homework, I'm going to talk to our guests in private." Abigail said before walking to the right and towards the hall, motioning for the others to follow.

"But it's Batman! And The Martian Manhunter and-" Coraline began to protest.

"And you still have homework, guests or no guests, so I expect a chunk of it to be done before I come back to check on you." Abigail called back over her shoulder as she walked along the hall, passing her room and continuing past the bathroom and Coraline's room.

She continued on until reaching the end of the hall and turned left, walking along further until reaching a seemingly dead end, she turned around and motioned to Batman and J'onn.

"Could you two please close your eyes" she asked plainly, not bothering to ask Giovanni to do so.

"Why?" Batman replied in a matching tone.

Abigail rolled her eyes at the question before speaking. "Because I don't want you to see what I'm about to do. I'm sure you'd have precautions in place for people regarding your Batcave, I'd like the same courtesy please" she said before folding her arms.

Batman and J'onn shared a look before both of them turned back towards Abigail and closed their eyes.

_**(Batman's POV)** _

Batman closed his eyes and as soon as he did he felt a sudden shift, like his body had been moved suddenly.

"Ok, you can open them now" Abigail said casually, Batman did so and instantly noted their surroundings had changed, they were no longer in the hall, but a large room.

The room had a wide circular area with stone flooring that they were currently standing on, beyond that it stretched out even further.

Various tables and desks were littered around with papers and items of different shapes and sizes, Batman could see several pedestals with objects littered about, as well as large shelves lining the walls full of books that stretched to the ceiling, which itself seemed to be several stories high.

There were several corridors that seemed to lead off into separate directions, as well as passage ways and an above mezzanine level which looked down upon them, staircases and steps were also strewn about the room, enabling access to the higher levels.

The roof looked to be made of glass, though it was currently blackened and tinted, showing no clue to their location.

Batman turned to see Abigail step onto a spiral staircase situated on the edge of the stone circle that he was still standing within, and the staircase suddenly became animated, unwinding from it's normal spiral and stretching out towards a seemingly random book shelf far to their left and higher up, Abigail walked along it calmly and deposited a book back into a missing space, before the staircase wound back to it's position it had previously been in, and she walked down to join them.

"Welcome to my Sanctum Sanctorum, a nice little place If I do say so myself" Abigail said proudly.

"Little?" Batman said dryly, looking at how the already large room branched off in various directions. The room they were currently in could be confused for a library in and of itself.

"Oh come on, like Mount Justice is small, pfft" Abigail scoffed as she motioned for the group to follow as she moved over to a large round table with several chairs around it.

**_(Batman's POV End)_ **

"Take a seat, I believe there's some things that need to come to light, concerning my previous experience with the City of Brass, and the book Daniel came in contact with" Abigail said, before glancing at Zatara.

"Or should I say, our experience. Isn't that right, Uncle" she said, causing Batman and J'onn to once again glance over at him.

"She's right" Zatara said with a sigh. "I hadn't planned on speaking of it, unless it was absolutely necessary. I may have had a lapse in judgement."

"No..." Abigail said, her eyes moving the floor momentarily. "You know it's not something I like bringing up either, I understand you not telling them. Though it would have come up eventually anyway, given that idiot's actions" she said frowning, referring to Daniel.

"What do you mean?" J'onn said speaking up, looking at the two with interest. "The two of you have dealt with the book before?"

"In a manner of speaking" Abigail said as she sat back in one of the chairs situated around the table. "It was many...many years ago, I was five years old at the time. A group had risen up, a bunch of low level upstarts magicians, hoping to use the book and the evil sealed in the city of brass, they may have not been much to worry about, had it not been for their leader. He was a figure cloaked in black robes and a mask which looked like a skull, he unified them and lead them to city."

"Despite the fact that the city only reveals itself once every century, that only pertains to regular people. Using sorcery and Magic there are ways of accessing the city outside of that window of opportunity, though it is not easy, and requires a lot of effort. The cloaked figure, who called himself Silas, was using the group for his own ends." Abigail explained as the two league members listened.

Zatara spoke up next, continuing where she left off.

"I had ran into this group more than once, as did John, Abigail's father. John however learnt of what they were truly after, as well as the dangers that this 'Silas' represented if he got his hands on the Necronomicon. So a group of us, consisting of myself and John, along with his allies, Papa Midnite and Richie Simpson, Jason Blood, and Abigail's mother set out to stop them, we arrived at the city first, though after we did, we found Silas and his group arrived close behind, and had known of our plans." Zatara said as his expression steeled. "And unfortunately for us, they had a contingency plan to get the book"

"Contingency plan?" J'onn asked, listening intently to the two.

Abigail was the one who answered his question, her eyes closed as she did.

"They had me..." she said, her voice almost a whisper as she did.

"They had kidnapped me." Abigail continued, all attention now on her as she spoke. "My mother had left me in the care of friends of hers, my dad having approved of it before they set off. However unbeknownst to us, Silas had been tracking them, and after they had left, he came for me. I barely was able to hide my baby sister before he got his hands on me, and took me from that place" Abigail said slowly, before looking up at the two League Members.

"When they confronted my dad and the others in the city of brass, he held me captive, threatening to kill me if my mother didn't do as he said."

**_(Flashback)_ **

_Five year old Abigail was currently frozen in mid-air, her body being held up by black tendrils of energy that restrained her arms and legs, as well as surrounded her body in sharp spikes pointed at her vital organs, two particularly large spikes pressed against her throat as she let out a whimper._

_Silas had a hand outstretched, the tendrils coming from the insides of his black cloak, as the six followers stood behind him, all wearing similar cloaks that hid their identities._

_They stood on a stone balcony, looking down below at their adversaries._

_"Did you really think I would come all this way, without bringing a little incentive?" Silas said, his voice coming out a darker gravely tone from behind the skull like mask that adorned his head._

_John took a step forward, seething with anger as he did. "I swear if you hurt her I'll-" he began, only for Silas to speak up._

_"Oh I won't hurt her...I'll kill her" he threatened, causing one of the spikes near her neck to extend slightly, pricking into Abigail's skin and making her let out a cry, causing John to halt right in his tracks._

_"I'll drain her of every last drop of blood she has, and then leave her deflated carcass for the vultures to feast upon if you do not do what I want!" he growled out, before looking down at Abigail's mother._

_She was dressed in a long white sleeveless dress that flowed down her body, and her long blonde hair hung freely, she was currently clutching the necronomicon to her chest and starring up at Abigail with widened eyes._

_"I won't ask you again!" Silas growled out, before raising his hand once more in Abigail's direction._

_"NO! Wait!" Abigail's mother screamed out, causing him to stop and turn to her, she slumped down, before bringing the book out in front of her body outstretched._

_"I'll do it..." she said looking up at him with tear filled eyes. "Just...don't hurt her" she pleaded before looking down at the book._

_"Sindella think about this" Papa Midnite began, only for Sindella to reply._

_"No! If he had your daughter, if he had Luna with him you wouldn't be saying that!" she said before closing her eyes and beginning a soft chant, opening them once more to reveal glowing white orbs as the book shook slightly before floating up several inches above her palms._

_"Yes..." Silas whispered as he watched from above._

_The book suddenly burst open, the pages flicking through fast as loud growls and horrific sounds began to fill the area._

_John and Zatara looked to see dark shadowy figures began to crawl out of the ground, seemingly rising up from it, as well as monstrous creatures materialising from the walls._

_Sindella, still chanting, saw a large flash of dark energy shoot up from the pages and into the sky, a large mass began to take shape, before the book dropped down to the ground, the process still going forward._

_"Hehehehe yes!" Silas cheered before thrusting his hand outward and sending Abigail flying through the air, causing her to crash down below on a mound of sand. "I don't need her any more" he said evenly, before turning back to his followers. "And I don't need any of you either"_

_Before the six could realise what he meant, they were all impaled upon black tendrils of energy, each stabbing into their hearts, their blood began to flow and travel down the tendrils at a fast rate, seemingly absorbing directly into Silas, who let out a pleasured moan as the followers gasped and choked for breath before they each fell to the ground._

_Meanwhile Sindella had turned towards Abigail and was rushing towards her, John and the others had begun to fight off the hoard of creatures and shadow figures that were still rising up and attacking them, all the while the mass in the sky began to take shape, a bipedal creature the size of a large building began to lower down to the ground, it's features were not yet fully defined, though it's growl filled the area like a horrific siren._

_Before Sindella could reach Abigail however, the giant creature that had been summoned from the book suddenly landed in-between them, it's huge form stretching up into the air before it's head peered down towards her, it's arm swiping down and grabbing the blonde woman in it's grip, squeezing her tightly._

_Sindella let out a pained scream as her body was compressed within the fist, her eyes shot open however when suddenly she was impaled._

_The giant creature's palm became covered in spikes that struck through her body like a pincushion, before it's palm opened and dropped her from the height, sending her flying down and crashing into the sand near Abigail, her body sporting bloody wounds from the chest down._

_The largest was a fist sized bleeding hole straight through her stomach._

_During all the chaos going on around them, Silas began to descend down to the lower level, his eyes focused on the book._

**_(Flashback End)_ **

Abigail's eyes were now teary, though none had fallen yet, the same could be said for Zatara who hadn't spoken at all during Abigail's recount.

"The shadow figures and monsters kept attacking, my dad and the others held them off and defeated a lot of them, but more seemed to keep coming. The magic that had held them prisoner in the city of brass had begun to weaken. The giant creature however had come from the book, and it wouldn't be contained inside the city for long, it had to be resealed back into the book itself." Abigail explained, her eyes starring down at the table as she spoke.

"So did you father and the others seal it back inside the book?" J'onn asked softly, seeing the pain that had repeatedly crossed over both her and Zatara's faces during the recount of the ordeal.

"No...Mum did" Abigail said after a moment, tears finally falling down her cheeks as she did.

"I had just begun to regain conciousness, and the giant creature turned it's sights towards me, rather than my dad or the others, I seemed like the easiest first choice I guess. And it was about to snatch me up, when suddenly..."

**_(Flashback)_ **

_Abigail's eyes widened in horror at the sight of the giant creature as it loomed above her._

_It gave another siren like shriek before raising it's left hand in the air, preparing to bring it down on the young girl._

**_"NO!"_ **

_A voice echoed through the area, and for a moment all the fighting seemed to stop and the giant creature seemed frozen in place as Abigail looked over in the direction of the voice._

_Sindella now stood once more, her bloodied form having stained the white dress she was wearing, the various wounds on her body now seemed much worse._

_However her form was glowing white, the air around her rippled and blew back as she looked at the giant with white lit eyes._

_" **YOU WILL NOT HARM HER!"**_

_John, Zatara and the others all froze as well, watching the sight before Sindella thrust her left hand out towards the book, causing it to fly through the air and to her._

_Silas, seeing this growled out in anger and was about to send an attack towards Sindella, only to be thrown back through the air and through a stone wall below the balcony he had come down from._

_Sindella turned towards John and the others, chanting once more as the book opened as it did before, the shadow beings and monsters all let out strangled cries as she did._

_"Back into your prison where you belong!" Sindella growled out as the figures began to fade back into the ground, clawing in vain as they disappeared, the monsters as well were dragged back down, some were sucked back into the walls and took the appearance of the walls fresco images once more._

_Even the beings that had been seemingly defeated returned back into the ground where they had came from, before Sindella turned her attention to the giant creature that had attacked her._

_The book floated up above her and the pages faced the creature before it began to howl out, it's body began to be pulled back towards the book as it's solid form began to shift back into a black mist._

_Abigail watched on silently as the creature's form was sucked back inside the book like smoke in a vacuum, before the area was filled with a bright white light, causing everyone present to shield their eyes._

_After several moments, the light faded, and Sindella had the book in her hands once more, shutting it with effort and chanted once more before the book floated up out of her hands and shot off into the air, flying across the ground before seemingly disappearing through it much like the monsters and shadow beings had._

_And then silence._

_Silence filled the area as those present seemed to still be processing what they had seen._

_Sindella meanwhile was still standing, albeit shakily, her legs seemingly rooted in place as she swayed, before she looked down at her hands, blood was pouring down from her arms, as well as the fist sized hole in her chest and other wounds, before she let out a cough, blood spewing from her mouth before her body lurched over and fell to the ground._

_This sprung everyone else into action as they all ran towards her, Zatara reaching her first and bringing her body into his lap._

_"N-No! No No" he gasped out, cradling her in his arms. "S-Sindella!" he cried out, tears welling in his eyes._

_She looked up at him lovingly, raising a hand to caress his face before her hand fell limp upon the ground as Giovanni's tears fell upon her lifeless form, the blood from her wounds seeping through into his clothes as he held onto her still._

_"...Mummy..." Abigail's voice called out softly, having finally processed what was happening, her body moved as she ran over towards them._

_Falling down at her side, Abigail's wide eyes began to brim with tears at the sight of her mothers bloody form, and the lack of movement._

_"Mummy!" she exclaimed, her voice heightening in pitch as she reached out and shook the older woman's limp form tearfully._

_"Wake up! Please wake up!" she screamed out as the adults all looked on at the heartbreaking sight._

**_(Flashback End)_ **

Batman, J'onn and Zatara were all silent as Abigail sat there, her eyes trained on the table as she brought a hand up to wipe the moisture from them onto her sleeve.

Glancing at Zatara, Batman noted the same expression on his face before Abigail cleared her throat.

"Mum managed to seal the creatures back into the city, as well as return the summoned one back into the book, preventing Silas from using it's dark powers. However coupled with the severity of her wounds, the strain was too much..." Abigail said quietly before she looked up at Batman and J'onn.

"She died keeping that book from falling into the wrong hands, and to keep it's evil contained, and now thanks to that boy, it's a threat once more. His actions have-" she began only to stop as a buzzing came from her pocket, causing her to pause before standing up from the chair, and reaching into her pants pocket, pulling out her phone a moment later and checking it.

"Excuse me, I have to take this" she said before walking away from the table and towards the spiral staircase, walking up it as she answered the call.

"Hello Olivia" she began before disappearing from earshot onto the upper level.

J'onn turned to Zatara who stood up from the table and let out a sigh.

"Maybe, given what we have learned, it would be best if Daniel was not on the team. I cannot see things working well between them" J'onn said crossing his arms as he contemplated what to do.

"No..No, I don't think keeping him off the team will make any difference. Abigail is no doubt already planning to look into incident independently outside of League business, whether she likes it or not, Daniel is connected to it directly, and she would most likely have to deal with him, even if it is just as a means of tracking it down." Giovanni said before letting out a sigh and rubbing his eyes with his right hand.

"Let me talk to her some more. I may be able to convince her still to allow Daniel to join the team, or at the very least consider it." Giovanni said as J'onn nodded slowly.

Batman meanwhile had ventured off away from the table, finding interest in a long desk which had various papers and charts spread about, as well as a large board hanging above it with scribbled notes and long sections of text.

Looking at them with curiosity, from what he could decipher some of the text and writings seemed to be some form of magical algorithm and process, while looking across the board he could see maps and charts arranged out, though they matched none he was familiar with.

Glancing down at the desk he saw an open book which had a picture framed beside it, the picture was not large but one that would be placed on someone work desk or on a shelf at home.

Reaching down he picked it up and his eyes narrowed slightly as he took in the two figures in the picture.

One of the figures was Abigail, who was dressed in light tan coloured robes and a dark red tunic, with dark brown boots, she also had a cloak tucked under her right arm.

Two the left of her was a young girl, who Batman guessed to be around eleven years old. She had chalk white coloured skin, which clashed with the dark hair atop her head that went down to her jaw in length, and light blue eyes. The girl was dressed in brown pants and a sleeveless shirt with a belt around her midsection, she also wore matching brown bracer's around her forearms.

Abigail's left arm was on the girls shoulder, and both of them were smiling in the direction of the camera.

Both of them seemed happy.

Before Batman could further inspect the picture it was suddenly pulled from his hand and flew over across the room into Abigail's outstretched right hand, the other hand holding her phone as she disconnected the call after saying goodbye to the person on the other end.

She frowned slightly before placing the picture inside her coat, before speaking. "You know the saying about curiosity and cats, or in this case I guess it would be 'bats'" Abigail said before placing her phone back in her pocket.

"I'm sorry to cut our little meeting short, but I am a bit tired after the long day" Abigail said as she walked back over to the three League members. "If you could close your eyes again please" Abigail said to Batman and J'onn, who once again glanced at one another before doing so.

When they opened there eyes there were once again in Abigail's flat, before she proceeded to walk them back out to the front door.

They heard the shower going in the bathroom as they walked past, and Abigail knew it was Coraline after seeing her no longer in the lounge room, glancing down at the homework sheets and books to see that the blue haired girl had done a fair bit of her work, before escorting the League members to the front door.

Batman and J'onn nodded to Giovanni before they exited through the door. Giovanni however remained inside, Abigail waited by the open door with her back to him.

"Abigail, look I know everything that's happened with Daniel-"

"I don't want to talk about it any more today, I already had to bring up Mum's death, I just want to unwind and not think about that idiotic kid for awhile" she said speaking up, as if already having seen the conversation coming.

Giovanni was silent after that, not speaking for several moments before he replied. "Are you really not going to help him"

Abigail didn't answer him, merely stood there near the open door.

This prompted Zatara to speak up once more. "If your mother was here, what do you think she would do"

"Don't!" Abigail said spinning around and starring at him with narrowed eyes, her tone hardening.

Zatara spoke again however, unaffected by her tone. "You know what she would do." he said before continuing. "What about Arella? Hmm, what would she do if she were here. What would they both do Abigail"

Abigail starred back at him, clenching her fists together as her eyes narrowed even further, it looked like she was ready to lash out at him, before her posture slumped down, her hands unclenched as she let out a breath, the strength seemingly gone from her form and being overtaken with exhaustion and fatigue.

"...They would help him..." Abigail said quietly, before bringing a hand up to rub her eyes, letting out a groan before looking at Giovanni once more, her expression was tired.

"Look, I'm not going to say yes. Not right now, just...just give me some time, I need to think, clear my head. Then I'll make a decision, but for the time being my stance isn't changing, he's not on the team."

Giovanni looked at her for a few seconds before nodding. "I cannot force you to change your mind, that is your choice alone. I just wanted you to think this over, give it time and let your mind clear."

Zatara then walked over and wrapped his arms around Abigail, giving her a hug that she returned.

After a few moments they separated and Abigail cleared her throat before speaking.

"Look, I'll come by tomorrow to check out some of the other files on recruits, I may have a few potential recruits of my own to look into" Abigail said evenly, causing Giovanni to nod before walking through the door.

* * *

 

**America, Gotham**

Several hours had passed and Batman was now seated in front of a large monitor in the batcave, though his attention was not on it. He leaned back in the chair he was seated in and clasped his hands together, thinking back to something that had caught his attention the moment he laid eyes on it.

The picture he had picked up earlier, with Abigail and the young girl in it, there was something off about it.

The Abigail in the picture looked older.

He was sure it was her, they looked identical in appearance, the only difference being the Abigail in the picture, he estimated to be in her late thirties or forties.

The picture Abigail looked to be a grown woman, not the younger one he had met.

His eyes narrowed as he thought it over, it's possible she had used a disguise of some kind, or magic to make herself look older.

But if that was so, why and for what purpose?

And who was the young girl who was in the picture with her?

These were among several questions that the days events had raised in his mind about Abigail, and he felt it was only the tip of the iceberg.


	9. Olivia Graham

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We get another glimpse into Abigail's past through the eyes of an old friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! And welcome to chapter 9 of Young Justice Dark.
> 
> Sorry this took so long to get out, I've been really busy lately, as well as getting ready to move houses next week ( I hate moving! )
> 
> Anyway, this chapter introduces another person from Abigail's past, Olivia Graham ( mentioned briefly in the previous chapter)
> 
> The character of Olivia belongs to my good friend 'AC333' whom I have worked with and collaborated with on the story 'Intangible' a Justice League fanfic that you can find on my fanfiction.net account. Olivia's backstory has been altered in this story, but to find out more you'll have to read below.
> 
> I will also be crossposting 'Intangible' and it's prequel 'Blaze Year One' on A03 in the near future. And if you want to check out some of 'AC33's' works, you can find her on A03 and Fanfiction.net.

_**(Flashback: 2 Years Ago)** _

_Abigail stood silently in her inner sanctum, her hands outstretched as the large stone blocks shifted into place, the room behind them slowly disappearing as the blocks continued to float over and sit in place, walling up the entrance._

_When it was complete, the blocks began to fuse together, until there was nothing left but a solid stone wall, with no trace of the room's presence._

_Four circles appeared in the centre of the wall before stretching out into the four corners, one circle resting in each corner before glowing orange and disappearing as well._

_Abigail looked at the blank wall before turning and walking away from it, her eyes were puffy and red, though she struggled not to let any more tears fall._

* * *

 

_Stepping out into the lounge room of her flat, Abigail paused as she was suddenly greeted by several individuals, all of whom looked at her silently, each of them had looks of sadness on their faces._

_She didn't need this, not now._

_"Abigail..." The person nearest to her, a bespectacled young woman wearing an orange turtleneck sweater said before reaching a hand out to Abigail, only for the blond to walk past her silently, heading for the door._

_"Abby wait!" Olivia called out to her, only to be ignored as Abigail kept walking towards the door._

**_(Flashback End)_ **

_**London, England. 12 AM** _

Abigail couldn't sleep.

It had been hours since The League members had left, Coraline was now in bed, and Agregor was out in the lounge room.

Having tried to get some sleep over an hour ago, Abigail had only succeeded in tossing and turning under her covers.

Letting out a frustrated groan she threw the blanket off and stood up, rubbing her eyes and reaching over for her phone, searching through her contact list before pressing one of the names.

Abigail stood silently as the dial tone rang out, before hearing the voice on the other end.

"Yeah, Olivia. I'm coming over...yeah...ok, sure...I'll see you soon"

_**(Ten minutes later)** _

Abigail stepped out into the lounge room, having fully dressed herself after grabbing a few things, and grabbed her trench coat as she walked past Agregor.

"I'm going to visit Olivia, I'll be back in a few hours" Abigail said as he nodded, watching her walk back out of the lounge room and down the hall.

"Bring me back a cheeseburger" he called out after her.

* * *

 

_**Atlanta, Georgia; America** _

Olivia Graham put her phone down beside her laptop on the coffee table in front of her, standing up she stretched out her arms and let out a small groan.

She had long, wavy, dark brown hair that gained a lighter colour in the summer. Her skin was a pale tone which stayed the same colour year round, barely tanning at all. She had dark eyebrows, thick eyelashes, and a ski slope nose

Olivia's eyes were dark brown with flecks of black and she had nicely shaped lips. Height wise, she was very short, standing at five feet and one and a half inches (the half mattered). She had curves and was not willowy. Instead, she had a small waist and a nice sized chest.

She was currently dressed in dark jeans and a long sleeved white shirt, as well as a pair of socks.

Olivia picked up a manila folder on the table before walking over to the front door.

When she arrived, Olivia reached down and put on a pair of dark black boots that went up to her mid calf, before grabbing a waist length leather jacket and putting it on.

She was about to leave when she suddenly paused, remembering something, turning back she quickly ran back and looked around the room, before spotting a set of keys lying on a table against the wall, it was seated underneath a long rectangular mirror that was placed horizontally on the wall.

Walking over she picked up the keys and put them in her jacket's left pocket, and was about to turn and leave, before pausing once more.

There were several framed photographs upon the table, all spread out and of different sizes.

Reaching down, she picked up one photo in particular; it was of Olivia and her father.

It had been taken shortly after she turned fourteen, she was wearing a pair of dark jeans and a grey long sleeved shirt in the picture and she was smiling at the camera, at her side was a taller bearded man with dark hair and a pair of glasses, he was thin and wearing a red open shirt over a T-shirt, and a pair of blue jeans and brown shoes.

He had a hand on her shoulder, and smiling at the camera as well.

This was Ritchie Simpson.

Olivia ran her thumb over the picture softly, before closing her eyes momentarily and placing it back down and turning, heading for the door.

She locked it on her way out before making her way down the steps to the pavement.

* * *

 

Given the time difference between Atlanta and London, it was only shortly after seven thirty PM Atlanta time when Abigail and Olivia were seated in a diner opposite one another in a booth.

Olivia had just received her order, having gotten just a sandwich, as she had eaten earlier and wasn't too hungry.

Abigail had a plate with three pancakes, two fried eggs and several strips of bacon, with several pieces of toast on the side. Olivia watched as Abigail poured syrup onto the pancakes from a small pitcher before setting it aside.

They sat in silence for several minutes, the only sounds coming from their booth was the sounds of Abigail's cutlery touching the plate as she slowly ate her meal.

"So, you brought them?" Abigail asked in-between bites, breaking the silence as she looked at Olivia.

"Yeah" Olivia replied, bringing the manila folder up onto the table and slid it over to Abigail, who took it with her free hand and sat it down beside her in the booth.

"Thanks" Abigail said as she turned her attention back to her plate, Olivia's eyes lingered on the place the folder was in, taking a sip of her drink as she did.

"So, any plans for tonight?" Abigail asked, causing Olivia to suddenly look up at her.

"Oh, uh no, not really." Olivia replied. "I finished all the work I had earlier this afternoon"

"You want to come back to my place and watch a movie? You could stay over if you want" Abigail asked.

"It's a bit late in England, isn't it" Olivia said as she placed her drink down on the table.

"Yeah, but I don't think I'm going to get much sleep tonight" Abigail replied before taking another bite of her pancakes.

Olivia thought it over momentarily before nodding in agreement. "Yeah, ok sure"

* * *

 

**_London, England_ **

The two were currently sitting on the couch in the lounge room of Abigail's flat, having just finished watching the movie 'Heathers'. Olivia had chosen it after some debate over what to watch.

"The only reason you chose that is cause you're obsessed with Christian Slater" Abigail commented as she finished off the small handful of potato chips that were left in the bowl they had filled up before the movie started.

"Excuse me, I am not obsessed with him" Olivia replied turning to her friend.

"I do admit, I enjoy his movies, and may have a little bit of a crush on him, but that's not an obsession" she continued as Abigail rolled her eyes.

"Suuuure" Abigail shot back as she stood up and carried the now empty bowl over the kitchen, placing it in the sink before walking back out into the lounge room and turning to head down the hall, Olivia got up and followed along.

* * *

 

The two were now in Abigail's Sanctum; Olivia was seated at the large table on the ground floor, looking over a book as she listened to Abigail, who was on one of the upper levels.

"So what'd you do next?" Olivia asked with interest as she glanced up, Abigail came into view as she walked down the spiral staircase holding a dark brown leather tome.

"Well what do you think I did, I took my tongue out of her arse and killed the lot of them" Abigail said as stepped off the staircase before it unwound back to its original state.

"Haven't been back to Mumbai since then though" she added as she strolled over and placed the book next to Olivia before taking a seat at the table.

Olivia spared her friend a glance, unperturbed by her words as she closed the book she had been reading and spoke up.

"So, what are you going to do about this Murray guy?" she asked as Abigail let out a sigh and reclined back in her chair, reaching into her trench coat and pulling out a fresh cigar.

"I haven't decided yet. Uncle Giovanni was really on my case about it, not to mention Batman and the others will probably keep on me about it" she said with tiredness lacing her tone.

Reaching for the ashtray placed on the table, she cut of the end of her cigar and placed it in her mouth, lighting it up with her lighter and allowing the end to burn a bright orange before inhaling into her mouth, holding the smoke in for several seconds and exhaling softly.

Taking the cigar from her lips she turned to Olivia.

"I now have more on my plate to deal with thanks to that stupid kid" she said with annoyance.

Olivia didn't respond immediately, letting several seconds pass as she looked at her friend.

"I do get where you're coming from, after hearing what he did, and reading that file. But at the same time, if you're going to try and fix this whole situation with the City of Brass, it doesn't seem likely that you'll be able to avoid dealing with this guy" Olivia said as Abigail let out another sigh.

"Believe me, the thought has crossed my mind" Abigail replied before taking another hit of her cigar.

"Look, just do what you said you would. Think it over and give it some time, that way you'll be able to process all of this better." Olivia said comfortingly as she placed a hand on Abigail's arm.

"Yeah…thanks Liv" Abigail said as her gaze was locked on the table, not looking at her friend as she was lost in thought.

* * *

 

Two hours later, Olivia was in the kitchen pouring a glass of water. She had deciding on retiring to bed, and was now dressed in a pair of pyjamas Abigail had lent her.

Abigail was still in her Sanctum, saying she would go to sleep later on after going over some of the files Olivia had provided her with earlier.

Thinking back to that manila folder she had given Abigail, Olivia paused before bringing the glass to her lips, slowly draining the glass with each small gulp.

"Heading to bed I see" a voice from behind spoke up, causing Olivia to turn slowly, recognising who was speaking to her.

Agregor was upon the countertop in his small form leaning against a loaf of bread.

"Yeah, I'm pretty tired, it's been a pretty full day" Olivia said before yawning softly before placing the glass in the sink and turning, preparing to head for one of the guest rooms Abigail had prepared for her.

As she walked past the kitchen area however she paused, her eyes travelling to the floor before she turned back around to face Agregor.

"How has she been lately…" she asked slowly.

Agregor turned to her, his expression lowering as he did.

"Recently, it's been more good days than bad" he answered, walking across the countertop and closer to where Olivia was standing.

"Tonight was the first time I've seen her in three months, and she drops that bombshell on me, having been pulled into the Justice League's business" Olivia said as she moved over to the countertop and leaned against it at Agregor's side.

"This will cause problems in future, I can see it happening" she said, to which Agregor nodded.

"Yeah, knowing Abigail and how she is, she'll definitely butt heads with some of them" Agregor said before a silence overtook them.

"…I worry about her Agregor" Olivia said quietly.

"I know…we all do" he replied softly.

"For the past two years, she's just…" Olivia began before her words died in her throat, causing her to let out a sigh.

"Coraline has helped to a degree" Agregor said to her. "Having her around has helped Abigail…though at the same time she's a double edged sword. As having her around, it reminds Abigail of him"

"I suspected it would" she replied softly.

"And though she hasn't said it, Coraline reminds her of the girl as well" Agregor continued.

Olivia nodded slowly as she thought of the person Agregor spoke of, though she had never met her in person, she knew of the girl he spoke of.

_**(Flashback)** _

_Olivia held the photo frame in her hands, starring down at the image it held._

_Abigail's smiling face starred back at her from the photo, she was dressed in light tan coloured robes and a dark red tunic, with dark brown boots, and she also had a cloak tucked under her right arm._

_She had her arm around a young girl who had chalk white coloured skin, which clashed with the dark hair atop her head that went down to her jaw in length, and light blue eyes. The girl was dressed in brown pants and a sleeveless shirt with a belt around her midsection; she also wore matching brown bracers around her forearms_

_Olivia's eyes lingered on the young girl in the photo, before bringing her head up to look at Abigail, who was at her side, also looking down at the photo with a saddened look, her eyes were moistening as her gaze was focused on the young girl._

_**(Flashback End)** _

"That girl…Abigail's first apprentice…" Olivia commented as she remembered the first time she saw the picture of Abigail with her first apprentice.

Their time together ended painfully after Abigail was forcefully torn away from her.

"Yeah" Agregor said as he hopped down from the countertop, his form shifting as he grew to his taller humanoid form, now standing taller than Olivia who had to look up at him.

"Maybe I should call Jenny, she could help me-" Olivia began only to be interrupted by Agregor.

"And what, stage another intervention? You know what happened last time you tried that" Agregor said shaking his head slightly.

"Well I can't just keep standing by and watching her do this to herself." Olivia said, her tone rising slightly.

"I mean she can't even fly anymore Agregor!" Olivia exclaimed throwing her hands out to the sides.

Olivia's breathing slowed down as she stood there; taking a few calming breaths as she slumped back against the counter.

"Look, I get it, I really do. But for now, the best thing we can do is be here for her. Trying to force her to change her mind won't work, nor will it end well for you if you try" Agregor said with finality.

Olivia's gaze was focused on the floor as she was silent for a few seconds before quietly speaking up.

"She's my oldest friend, and the closest thing I have to a sister." Olivia said slowly before she pinched the bridge of her nose and exhaling. "I love her dearly, and I just...I just want to help her" she said before turning and heading towards the hall, her fatigue finally taking its toll.

"…We all do" Agregor said quietly.

* * *

 

Olivia was walking down the hall, intent on collapsing into bed and sleeping away the next few hours peacefully.

Traversing down the hall, she turned at the end and went right, walking along before coming to an open door to her guest room.

It was a medium sized bedroom, much smaller than Abigail's, but Olivia didn't mind, it was a guest room after all.

The walls were an eggshell blue colour with white trim along the borders, a white ceiling fan hung down from the centre of the ceiling, and the floor was covered in soft white carpeting.

There was a bed in the right corner of the room against the wall, where Olivia had placed her clothes, except for her jacket and boots which were by the door, a coat stand holding her jacket.

On the left side of the room was a dressing table with a vanity mirror atop it against the wall, beside it was a television on top of a small desk and a wardrobe against the far wall for clothes,

Walking over to the bed, Olivia picked up her clothes and moved over to the dressing table, placing them atop there before returning back to the bed. There were two large photo albums sitting there, one had a white hard cover, while the other was green. The white photo album was still opened on the page she had looked at before.

Olivia had asked Abigail for them after leaving the Sanctum earlier, wishing to have a look through them; she had spent some time flipping through them.

She sat down on the bed and picked up the white photo album, a small smile graced her features as she stared down at the pages.

The left page was covered in white framed Polaroid pictures, some of which Olivia had taken herself.

One of the pics showed a younger Abigail, who looked to be around the age of nine, sitting on a bench in a park, beside her was a dark skinned girl with long dark black hair, the two were eating ice cream and looking back at the camera.

She remembered taking that picture, it was a good day.

Glancing at another pic, it showed Abigail at age twelve, her blond hair held in a ponytail as she was dressed in a pair of long dark red pants and a white singlet. She was laying back on a lounge asleep.

Looking at another photo, she saw a thirteen year old Abigail and another girl. The girl was wearing a short sleeved cream shirt and long black pants; she had dark, almost blood red hair and bright green eyes. Abigail was standing atop the girls shoulders, though the red haired girl showed no signs of strain.

The red haired girl was smiling while holding her arms up and flexing her biceps, while Abigail had her arms crossed, both had large grins on her faces.

Chuckling slightly, Olivia looked over to the right page, it had several other Polaroid pics, and some were wider pictures taken with a different Polaroid model.

But the picture at the bottom of the page had been taken with a digital camera, and was a wide rectangular picture with four figures in it.

Abigail was next to Olivia, she was thirteen and wearing a dark red jacket that went past her waist, her right hand was on Olivia's shoulder.

To Abigail's left was the red hair girl, who had an arm around Abigail's shoulder, and to her left was the dark skinned girl who was had her back resting against the red haired girl's side.

All of them were looking at the camera.

Looking over the photo, Olivia ran a finger along it, a feeling of nostalgia coming over her as she looked upon it.

.

.

.

.

Things seemed so simpler back then.

And now…

Her expression sobering, she slowly closed the album, placing it atop the green album she lifted them up and carried them over to the dressing table, placing them atop there before walking back over to the bed, pulling open the covers and blanket she laid down, pulling the covers back over herself and getting comfortable before she closed her eyes.

* * *

 

Abigail sat silently in her Sanctum, she had exited the main room that she and Olivia had been sitting in previously, having headed down one of the corridors that led off from the main room, and was now seated in a small but wide room, smooth carpeted floor was beneath her and the room was lit by florescent lighting from the roof.

Abigail was seated at a desk, looking up at a large board that was spread out across the entire wall, before glancing down at the papers and documents she had laid out, having opened the manila folder Olivia had given her she was staring at the documents blankly.

There were several photographs attached to each document, each document showing a different man.

Her eyes once again glanced up at the board, showing many documents and maps attached to it, along with many photographs spread all out, showing different men, some pictures had string connecting them, creating a web of sorts. Some of the photos looked like security footage, while others had driver's licenses; there were others varieties amongst them.

Though a majority of the photos had red markings across them crossing out the men it held.

Turning her attention back to the photos on the desk, Abigail placed a half finished cigar in her mouth, quickly lighting it with her lighter and taking a deep drag, letting the smoke out to wash over the documents as she leaned her head back to look at the dark ceiling above her.

She was going hunting again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, there you have it, chapter 9 ( It was a little shorter than I had wished, but I wanted to post it after leaving you all hanging for so long)
> 
> We got to meet Olivia, and see another glimpse into Abigail's past through her friends eyes.
> 
> As well as more questions being raised:
> 
> Whats the deal with Abigail's 'first apprentice' ?
> 
> Why is Olivia so worried about Abigail?
> 
> What was that folder about? and who are those men?
> 
> What happened to Ritchie Simpson?
> 
> Who were the other girls in the photos?
> 
> And just what did Abigail seal up behind that wall?
> 
> So many questions, and not many answers.
> 
> To find out more, and to see what happens next, you'll have to stick around for the next chapter of Young Justice Dark


End file.
